Winter Solstice New Year's Resolutions
by Marianne H. Stillie
Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Winter Solstice - New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 1

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Romance/Drama/POV/Hurt/Comfort

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice - The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: This next part of my SVM series for Sookie and Eric will be a departure from my usual one-shots. As it's unfolding, the overall story is so long and so complex, it needs to be told in chapters. Here's the first one. Enjoy!

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 1

Whoever came up with the idea of a honeymoon was a genius! It was supposed to be a special time for a newly married couple to get away from all the ordinary things they had to do in their every day lives and get to know each other more intimately than they could if they stayed at home.

The past ten days Eric and I had spent in our private chalet at this luxurious Vancouver resort were even more than I'd hoped for. I know. We'd been married under vampire law for almost a year so it kind of didn't count. Except that our one night together after the pledge knife thing hadn't been what this girl had always dreamed of when she became a bride. Being kidnapped and tortured by hate-crazed fairies wasn't supposed to be part of the deal a few days later either. Now that I was really Mrs. Eric Northman under human law, I was enjoying _all_ the perks that came with the license and the beautiful ceremony we'd shared on the night of the winter solstice turning.

Once my days and nights got turned around so that Eric and I were awake at the same time, we took full advantage of everything the hotel offered to its vampire clientele and their human companions. I had the choice of meals either in our chalet from a well-stocked kitchen, from their delivered-to-our-door catering service, or at one of the hotel's four-star restaurants. If you ever have the chance, try a blueberry pancake breakfast by sunset on a glassed-in veranda with the last rays of the day turning the massive sheet of white snow outside a raging red-orange all the way to the horizon.

Finding things to do during the amazing sixteen hours of night at this latitude had been easy for us. Go ahead and laugh. There _had_ been plenty of nookie in all forms, positions and locations. Did you expect anything else from my vampire husband and me?

There had also been moments of such rapturous intimacy between us, in private and in public, I never wanted our time here to end. The openness and ease of even the simplest show of affection was beyond words, each made stronger by our total blood bond.

Gourmet dinners at the hotel usually evolved into dancing for Eric and me. The elegance and grandeur of the huge complex made me feel like I was on a land-locked version of the _Titanic. _We were able to meet other vamps under a truly relaxed and fun atmosphere. Compared to my experiences in New Orleans and Rhodes, I was having a ball with the undead acquaintances we met, their blessed silence in my head highly pleasurable.

I'd known since our time together two years ago that Eric loved the snow. What I now discovered about my significant other was that he was a rabid skier. I didn't feel left out though. While he was off night skiing each evening, I took ice skating lessons from a former Olympic champion turned vampire. Along with our dancing prowess in high school, Tara and I had spent many weekend hours at the roller rink in Monroe. I'd always wanted to learn to ice skate but the facilities just didn't exist in my part of Louisiana. Not to brag, but I picked up that new form of skating pretty fast. Eric, of course, became my primary audience, telling me how beautifully graceful my body looked as I glided on the ice. Even the times I fell, I got especially warm hugs. Like my singing, he loved me too much to hurt my feelings.

There were plenty of nights we just stayed in. Those private times became a deepening of the personal confidences we now shared so easily. Our promises to each other left no stones unturned anymore. Even the most volatile topics, why he didn't come the night of my torture, our fears for each other that were so in synch, his past in all its graphic details, good and bad, were laid bare.

Eric rarely talked about his past since too much of it was tied to the barbarism of the human world he had struggled to survive in for so many centuries. His love of life usually confined him to the good times he'd encountered all too rarely. He was such a great storyteller, I felt as if I was there in those times and places with him. His very first reminiscence to me was that he'd been in the audience at the Paris Opera the November night in 1928 when _Bolero_ had premiered. As I listened to him spin his visually colorful story, I had felt painfully inadequate. My life had been so ordinary, I had little to share with him. With one of those totally joyful laughs I loved so much from him, he explained the real reason for his gregarious storytelling: much of his past had become entwined with new memories since he'd met me, like the _Bolero _connection, he was deeply grateful for the life he had created, far more than a millennia-old vampire had a right to be. I couldn't find the words in response so I made love to him vigorously until we finally collapsed into sleep just before dawn.

Being so open about his turning as well as his wife and children had been hard for him at Fangtasia last January. It was why I never pushed him about his reason for not coming when I called him in my agony. During our pillow talk the second night of our honeymoon, he'd told me the harsh events that had transpired with his maker, and I couldn't help crying for him. Through our bond of trust and honesty, he was allowing himself to remove the last of his ingrained vampire barriers with me, his true wife. I also promised myself I'd give Pam a huge hug and kiss for risking so much to protect him.

Before my excessively sentimental mind could wander any further, I heard what had become a very familiar and pleasant sound coming down the hallway from our bedroom. A vampire, even one as tall and well built as Eric, usually moved very quietly – except when he was wearing size 33 ski boots. Like a giant Sasquatch in a riotously colorful ski suit, Eric clonked into the living room, his hair tied back and his cell phone pressed tightly to his ear. His clipped, one-sided comments told me Pam was on the other end of the connection with one of her regular check-ins.

I watched him shrug apologetically and fold his big body onto the couch, his ski helmet still under his arm. My vow of "for better or worse" had included accepting my husband's duality in the real world, his roles as my all-encompassing lover and spouse in private along with his prominent and powerful existence as a vampire politician and entrepreneurial businessman in public. Sighing, I decided I would jealously delight in the too short hours of the last two days of our newlywed isolation. My consolation that he was a part of my life so completely every day now no matter where we were made even the negatives tolerable.

With one last comment, "Our flight arrives in Shreveport well before your outgoing flight is scheduled. Don't worry," Eric clicked the "end" button on his phone.

To my surprise, he closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the couch. "You must be anxious to get back to check up on things at Fangtasia yourself?" I asked cautiously, sensing an emotional barrier around my man.

Eric's head snapped up, his eyes glittering with a suppressed annoyance. "I'm not in any hurry to get back to that vampire rat race," he explained calmly, contradicting his facial expression. "But Pam is very antsy to be on her way to Toronto." The sharpness slowly evaporated, replaced by an easy smile.

I felt the unexpected show of annoyance from my blood bonded disappear with his smile. Resisting the impulse to laugh at the double contemporary slang expressions my husband had used so blithely, I relaxed and smiled back, "I hope I get to meet Alec. He must be very special if Pam loves him."

"You _will_ get to meet my eldest child," he said simply. Leaning forward he began fastening the buckles on one boot.

Kneeling in front of him, I let my hands slide down the leg and pushed his hands away. I couldn't control the teasing smile my lips just naturally formed as I recalled how enthusiastic Eric always was for sex after his invigorating exercise each night.

"Something is amusing you, dearest?"

"Your ski suit. It reminds me of a rainbow snow cone."

"What is a snow cone?"

"It's a summer thing. A paper cone filled with shaved ice and drizzled with different flavors of syrup."

Eric's puzzled frown quickly evolved into the sexually suggestive voice that came so naturally to him, "Is it something to lick?"

"Oh, definitely. Yum."

My husband leaned forward, his eyes capturing mine in a blood-bond fueled moment of pure desire. "What is your favorite snow cone flavor?" he asked licking my earlobe with the tip of his very talented tongue.

That tongue created more than a slight tickle, and I answered with a shiver, "I'll tell you when you get back from your run on the slopes."

If I thought my comment would discourage Eric, I was wrong. His mouth took the place of his tongue and traveled hungrily down to my neck. I felt the exciting pressure of his partially extended fangs on my skin. "While we lie by the fire and you warm me up," he whispered. Fangs scraped more aggressively and lips nuzzled searchingly into the hollow of my throat, pushing down the vee of my light green sweater until my braless breasts were fully exposed.

My control and my libido were in a raging battle as Eric's hands joined his search of my body. Moaning, I managed to blurt out, "Are you sure you want to go to the New Year's Eve Ball at the hotel? We could just stay here and exchange our New Year's resolutions in private."

Slowly and teasingly, Eric moved back from his hot embrace of my body. "There's plenty of time to do both, lover. Besides, I enjoy driving the Range Rover in the snow. In fact, I've decided to buy one for when we stay in Bon Temps."

"Bon Temps hasn't had snow in years."

"Then we'll be prepared for when it happens," he responded in total seriousness.

Through the laughter that took hold of us, I said, "I have a new song for the drive over," and I proceeded to belt out the lyrics to Tina Turner's _The Best_.

As I headed into the third sentence, Eric pressed his mouth to mine. Through moist lips he said, "You hum beautifully, Sookie dearest."

This time my blond eyebrow went up in surprise. A few seconds of intense staring at my man then my hands went back to the boot buckles. "Since this is our first New Year as husband and wife, I want to celebrate with a very private dance, Eric." He waited politely, knowing instinctively that I had more to say. "I know you don't have the costume or even the G-string here, but I do have an extended version of _Bolero_ on my iPod."

"Anything for you," he said gently, kissing me so tenderly I couldn't help remembering those same sweet words he'd used the night he'd come back from hiding Debbie Pelt's car.

"I like the Eric you've been on our honeymoon."

"Am I fully the man you fell in love with two years ago?"

Noticing his unusual emphasis on the word "man", I responded, "Yes."

"My New Year's resolution is to be that man for you for the next year, and for as long as you want me to be."

"Forever?"

"Forever. Your resolution, my love?"

"Well, it's almost a year since, you know. I'm going to do my best to stay out of harms way for another year."

"I promise I will do everything I can to make sure you are always safe, my wife."

Smiling up at my vampire husband who knew how to keep promises very well, I finished buckling his ski boots.

Outside with the moon reflecting off the pristine snow, I noticed a quirky grin appear on Eric's glowing vampire face. "You know Claude recorded us that night."

I gulped. "He did?" I felt a hot flush creep up my whole body at the thought of our triple x-rated mating dance recorded for all posterity.

"Yes, the only copy of which is on my desk at Fangtasia along with my replacement costume."

It didn't take a genius to realize my thousand-year-old master vampire was playing me very seductively. Giving him back tit for tat, I rubbed my body very thoroughly against him. Grabbing his awesome butt as tightly as I could through the ski suit with both my hands, I said, "Be careful."

Proudly, Eric answered, "I am vampire. I'm always careful." Laughing, he gave me a kiss that promised a very special evening of passion when he returned. "I love you, Mrs. Northman." Another kiss, this one coming from him to me intensified a thousand fold through our blood bond then he took off, his ski gear gripped closely against his body.

I watched him disappear into the blackness toward the distant mountains.

* * *

With practiced ease, I landed on the slope I had discovered my second night of skiing in the North Shore Mountains. I had gone far beyond the established trails searching the backcountry for a challenging wilderness that had never been deflowered by humans. Along with the remoteness, I wanted the thrill of danger to go with the skiing. With my vampire reflexes and vision, trees and rocks were easy obstacles to overcome. It was something my undead nature always craved. There were risks to my adventurous desires that no human would dare hence I kept the details of my explorations from Sookie.

Expertly, I attached the ski bindings and with a strong push on my ski stocks, took off down the steep incline of the first part of my regular route. As the cold air whipped across my face, I felt a physical rush, as if all those human bodily fluids were still coursing through me in the old fashioned way, unaided by the thousand-year-old vampire magic that animated my body.

My solitary excursions out on the slopes each night were more than enjoyable exercise. It gave me time to think. In the normal world my thoughts weren't always pleasurable. These past ten days even the tough subjects had been tolerable.

For just that brief instant with Sookie, I was angry that I had to go back. I knew it was too strong an emotion for the situation, but it gave me the chance to vent my feelings in private to the one being who would truly understand, the only one who knew both vampire Eric and human Eric completely. She didn't say, but I felt her projected understanding clearly. How much I wanted to be that carefree amnesiac again, living an ordinary life with my lover despite being a vampire. But that wasn't me, as my woman had always known. The real me wanted the power and position along with the happy life. Now that Sookie and I had come to an understanding and were truly wed, I had the best of both worlds.

That Sookie worried about me and my future still surprised me. It was an emotion the human women I had known over the centuries never demonstrated. Even under beguilement, their desire for material goods had always come first. I had made mention of a dalliance from my past here and there in casual conversation. Sookie was so secure in her place with me I knew my colorful sexual past didn't matter to her. I didn't fool myself though. If any woman, human or vampire, ever attempted to seduce me in the here and now, they would be very sorry.

Only my children, Alec and Pam, had shown a true level of caring before Sookie. My female child just before Pam, Emma, had been a tragic mistake. Her turning had been a moment of weakness on my part. She had been the first siring for me since Alec five centuries before. I had known immediately she was too weak to be a vampire. Only the strong and intelligent survived their first year. Emma would have perished if I hadn't coddled and protected her. That she had died stupidly soon after she went out on her own was proof of my error in judgment. Yes, I had been lonely, wanting a new companion, but I refused to make another wrong choice. I had watched Pam for many nights, gauging her strength and spirit, before I made myself known to her. I have never, to this day, been disappointed in my choice of her as my newest child.

I had never felt a compulsion to be a maker like so many of my kind. Sophie-Anne had been the most calculating maker I have ever known. I respected her for the power she had achieved. Deep within me, I simply did not have that level of callousness. After my own forced turning, I found the practice of siring to be repulsive and beneath my pride as a vampire. My distaste had held firm for three hundred years, until I had been confronted with Alec's dying body. There had been a special spark in his priestly spirit that I felt needed to be preserved. In the seven hundred years since, I have never regretted my decision. The bonds we have forged over the centuries were more those of friends, brothers and comrades-in-arms than the subservience of child to sire. And for a priest, my eldest child was also a formidable fighter.

I admit that I have my own worries for Sookie. Despite my promise to keep her safe, her new career would often take her away from my direct protection. I wondered if I would someday have to make common cause with the likes of Quinn, the betrayer, to ensure her wellbeing. I had kept my thoughts on this matter to myself so far, but to be truly open and honest with my beloved wife, I knew the topic needed to be addressed.

Perhaps tonight, after we had celebrated our first New Year as husband and wife, would be the perfect time to speak of it. Through our blood bond, I had been able to feel my new bride's happiness that I was able to relax and enjoy life so unencumbered during our honeymoon. Along with my child-like joy and innocence, two emotions she delighted in attributing to me, I could feel how openly she had embraced those same feelings during our special time together. I had become decidedly more human in my vampire being since our marriage, as she had become more vampire in her human soul since our solemn vows. Yes, tonight would be the right time for such a talk.

I was looking forward to this special night, ending one truly momentous year of my immortality and moving expectantly into a new one of hope and love. It would be the second anniversary of my rebirth to humanity, all because of my sweet Sookie, a human woman I had come to want and need beyond all vampire reason and rules. To those still bound by the old vampire traditions, my love for her was a weakness, an unacceptable vulnerability that could destroy me. I was very aware and guarded to those dangers that could bring me down politically and physically. I also knew how far I could safeguard myself without shutting out the happiness I had found with my beautiful wife.

It had taken my beloved a long time to understand and accept that I would be a part of her completely through our blood bond as she would be a complete part of me. The night we had talked in depth about our mutual fears had enriched our bond in a very new way. There would be choices we would have to make someday about our merging identities as human and vampire. We both agreed that when our child was born we would have a clearer picture of what that future would be.

For now I was planning more mundane activities for a normal married couple. I had inquired at the hotel as to what vampire-friendly facilities would be available for the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Fortunately, there were many, so I booked the reservations for us without hesitation.

As I approached a major turnoff on the route I used repeatedly, I had a strong sense that I was not alone on the mountain. It was similar to the eerie human perception of being watched that I had experienced several times when Sookie and I had been at the main hotel complex. The harsh scraping of skis other than my own on surface ice echoed through the night silence, pricking at my vampire hearing. The heavy scent coming up behind me was definitely another vampire and a highly malevolent one.

Increasing my speed, I diverted to a narrow expanse of virgin snow that skirted a dense stand of old-growth evergreens. Both the sound and feeling of pursuit faded as I pushed my body for more speed. Not taking anything for granted, I took a quick look behind me. My acute vision saw only my own lines of passage through the formerly unbroken whiteness.

Changing course again, I opened an alternate route that would eventually take me back the way I had come. Only my thousand years of experience as a vampire enabled me to withstand the thick miasma of hate that slammed into me from my left. My pursuer had outflanked me and closed the distance between us significantly.

I didn't need a look to tell me I was losing ground against this assassin. His gift was that of extraordinary speed beyond the norm. I should have been more cognizant of the feelings of surveillance that had obviously gone beyond my simple presence at the hotel. He had to have been watching each night to know the isolated areas where I skied. My anger at my novice vampire stupidity made me careless, and I barely missed a snow-dusted outcropping of boulders. There was obviously no outrunning him. My only option was to use my gift of flight. The odds were slim to none that he had the same ability.

Whipping between a break in the trees, I jumped, shedding the ski bindings in mid-air, letting the skis slide away as they hit frozen ground. Always the preemptive vampire, I kept both stock bands around my wrists in case I needed the pointed poles for defense. The rush of empty air as I rose was brief. I had not counted on this creature being able to jump as fast as he ran. Grabbing both my legs, his vampire strength pulled me inexorably back to the ground.

In all the dozens of times I had fought to preserve my immortal life, I had never known fear, only a powerful determination to survive. My will to live now was made even stronger by the blood bond that had become all encompassing for me. In a fresh rage of blood lust, I drove the points of both ski stocks down into my enemy's body, piercing flesh and chipping bones. His hands that held my knees loosened but didn't let go. I felt his frigid rage expand then he pulled me down into the cold crust. As he attempted to shake the stocks out of his flesh, he tumbled through the thick layers of storm packed snow taking me with him.

I sensed the edge of the mountain before I saw it. So did my assassin, but too late. The momentum of our struggle carried us to the maw of an ice crevice. Free falling off the lip, we continued to grapple as the law of gravity took precedence over vampire magic.

I do not know how long I lay unconscious. Ignoring the stiffness in my neck, I scanned the mixture of snow and ice-glazed rocks that covered the floor of the crevice. My pursuer was several yards to my right, sprawled across a mass of boulders. He was alive as I was. He was also injured with broken bones and internal injuries that I was sure matched my own. He might be faster than I in some ways, but his undead body broke as easily as mine had.

Through the waves of pain assaulting me, I laughed silently. The ancient Norse gods were playing a perverse practical joke on me after all the centuries of absence from my immortality. I had faced the prospect of finding out if their alleged afterlife was real often enough that I wasn't afraid to die. My consolation had always been that I'd had a long, exciting existence since being turned. There would be a great irony in meeting my final death on this isolated winter landscape now. I would be losing what had taken me so many centuries to find, true love and happiness that had always eluded me.

As I felt my body's sluggish efforts at healing itself, I shook off the maudlin thoughts. Carefully glancing across the dark space, I saw that my assassin hadn't stirred. Unfortunately, he wasn't dead, but his slower recovery from the fall would give me time to take flight, back to Sookie's healing blood and loving arms. Focusing on staying alive, I ripped the left sleeve of my ski suit. Deftly, I extracted a ten-inch needle-thin stake of heavily barbed Australian hardwood from the leather sheath on my forearm. Only once since becoming a vampire had I been caught without such a means of self-defense.

Gathering my strength, I got to my hands and knees, steadying my body for a strong push into the air. What I hadn't anticipated was my executioner playing possum, a quaint country expression I now understood all to clearly. The rush of air as he approached gave me only a split second warning to shift my body away from his attack, a much thicker wooden stake that ripped into my back, tearing muscles and splintering ribs as it went. Despite the shock, my reaction was quick and practiced. My executioner's arm was detached from his body, tendons dripping, the bloody stake dangling from his hand. I didn't give him time to react, simply plunging my own stake directly into his heart. The shock of his approaching death registered on his face then he crumpled backwards into the snow.

The stench of the dead vampire's blood became a cloud in the cold air, bringing a familiar yet slightly different noxiousness to my nostrils. My anger and pain were too immediate so I didn't dwell on that thought. Only the disintegration of his body that quickly followed gave me some respite from the disgusting odor and the puzzling familiarity.

Rolling over painfully, I got to my hands and knees again. The wound in my back had just missed my heart. The blood that had poured out glittered like black crystals against the white snow. Praying to those mythical gods of my Viking ancestors, I knew I had to stay alive, for Sookie even more than for myself. Without me to protect her, she would be open to all the worst that my kind were capable of in their unnatural state.

With my last spark of energy, I struggled to stay conscious. "Sookie, hear me," I whispered.

* * *

Screaming, I woke up. I sat up on the couch, sweat dripping from my nightmare-drenched hair into my eyes. I'd dreamed that Eric was out there in an endless darkness, a huge puddle of black growing underneath his supine body. With my heart pounding in my ears, I doubled over in excruciating pain. My vision of my beloved was no dream! Dreams didn't hurt like hell when you were awake!

Closing my eyes tightly, I used our blood bond to reach out, trying to find where Eric was and how badly he was hurt. The connection to my husband was immediate. What I felt coming from his mind and body was horrific. I was enveloped in the agony of a dying vampire.

As if he was right here beside me, his barely audible voice whispered, _"Sookie, hear me."_

My answer was swift, "I hear you, Eric!" Forcing a calmness I really didn't feel, I begged, "Fight through the pain and come to me. Please, lover."

I felt rather than heard his determined response, and it gave me hope. The powerful threads of our bond held and he roused from his growing stupor.

Frantically pulling on my boots and a quilted jacket, I rushed outside. As I stood in the freezing cold, I steadily pulled Eric to me, my mental vision closing the distance in agonizingly long seconds and minutes. With a quavering relief, I sensed him coming closer through the still night sky. His body was weak but his will to be with me again was strong. With a flagging burst of energy, Eric's massive body fell out of the darkness and crashed face down into the snow beside me.

Kneeling beside him, my hands searched his body, for injuries and for assurance that there was still life in my beloved vampire. In answer, a flicker of magic I had sensed only when I was with my fairy kin went through me. It confirmed my fear: his vampire life force was in mortal danger.

Placing my hand on a dark spot near his left shoulder blade, I felt the stickiness of congealing blood. Leaning close to Eric's ear, I called sharply, "You can't stay out here, Eric!" Pressing my wrist to his lips, I said, "Drink, so you can stand up. I can't get you inside on my own." When he didn't respond, I screamed, "Do you want to die tonight, vampire?"

Eric's eyes flickered open. As he roused, all his pain revived and poured into my body. Barely hanging onto my own control, I lifted his head, rubbing my wrist into his cold lips hard. Slowly, his fangs came out and he bit into me. His first pulls on my blood were weak but effective.

"That's it, Viking. My blood is sweet and strong and all for you."

To my surprise, Eric withdrew his fangs from my flesh. With great effort, he got to his hands and knees. Leaning closely into him, I followed, helping him drape his long arm across my shoulders. With a mutual blood-bonded strength, we stood up. Step by painful step, we made it into the chalet living room. This time his body crashed to the hardwood floor face up with a sickening thud, jarring broken bones and damaged organs with far more trauma than his landing outside. The inside warmth quickly thawed his external wound, creating a growing puddle of fresh, thick vampire blood underneath him.

Despite my efforts to hold onto his millennia-old immortality, Eric was slipping away again. Frantically, I begged, "Don't you dare leave me, Eric Northman!" and I pressed my arm to his mouth.

Eric's eyes blazed up at me, insane with fear and pain. In his delirium, he pushed my arm aside and went for my neck. His fangs dug deeper as his heavy pulls on my body intensified. I felt myself drifting into a cloud of ecstatic pain.

"My life…for…yours…"

Before my mouth could act on my next thought, all I felt was blackness.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 2

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift, Winter Solstice – The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

* * *

Winter Solstice - New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 2

I should be dead. No, that's wrong. I really should be _undead_ like the beautiful, loving, and petrified thousand-year-old vampire I woke up alongside just after midnight on New Year's Day.

My brain was so foggy as I lay wrapped tightly in Eric's arms, I couldn't comprehend why the first words out of my husband's mouth were, "I'm sorry." Then it all started to trickle out: the skiing, the assassin on the mountain, the near-death state I found him in outside our chalet. I couldn't quite understand why he was apologizing though, until the weakness in my body also came through the fog. In his very normal vampire blood lust to survive, Eric had almost drained me.

In what I knew was a very weak voice, I told him how thrilled I was that he was alive, that giving him my blood to save his life was part of loving him so much. With a very soft kiss, he shushed me. He reached up to the bookcase headboard and retrieved a bottle of TrueBlood. Flipping off the cap with his thumb he held it to my lips, explaining that Dr. Ludwig, whom he'd consulted by phone, said it would be best if I had some of the Japanese synthetic instead of his blood to restore my strength. It didn't have the normal human immunity factors but the basic nutritional elements were there.

I was too weak to debate with him right then so I let him play nursemaid. Sitting up, I leaned back against his bare chest and let him feed me. All the while he held me, I could feel his throbbing guilt at what he'd almost done to me. While I took slow sips of what tasted like a cross between prune juice and castor oil (yuck!), I tilted my head and stared up at him. As if he was afraid to allow any silence, he told me about the arrangements he'd made for us to head back to Shreveport that morning instead of on the second of January as we'd originally planned.

I guess I was getting used to the cloying taste of what I was swallowing because my eyes started to wander around the room. I noticed five empty TrueBlood bottles on the dresser across the room. Apparently, my man had stopped himself from gorging on my blood before he'd had enough to heal himself. Still, through the threads of our blood bond, I could tell he wasn't completely back to normal.

For the first time since Eric's amnesia, we shared a bed without making love. I could feel how much he wanted to talk about what had almost happened, but like me, his emotions were too raw and festering to express anything clearly. After whispering, "I love you," we simply held each other. I gave in to my weakened body and was asleep again in a few minutes.

The private Anubis Air charter flight back to Shreveport was blessedly peaceful. I slept fitfully, haunted by nightmares of almost losing my beloved. I lost count of the times I reached over and caressed the smooth grey travel coffin that was in the aisle. All I wanted to do was get home, get Eric into our big, comfortable bed and sleep next to him for hours. It wasn't until last night that we finally talked.

I'm usually a shower person, wanting to get on with the day as quickly as possible. After the two near misses I'd endured on my first day of this new year, I decided lolling in a tub of steaming water was a necessity. I was grateful there was a luxurious oversized tub in our bathroom, like the one in _Pretty Woman_. I just can't help loving that movie. As the wisps of steam bubbled up from the growing level of water, I added overly generous scoops of foaming bath salts. The aroma of jasmine and patchouli filled the entire room. Gladly, I relaxed into the fragrances seeping out of the heated water, resting my head on a large inflated pillow.

I must have dozed off from the warmth because my eyes suddenly snapped open. Being in the tub wasn't what startled me. It was the emotions coming from my wide-awake husband leaning against the doorjamb staring at me.

In an oddly subdued tone, Eric said, "I am sorry if I frightened you. I will wait until you are done." Turning away before I could answer, he left the bathroom.

When Eric went into his formal language mode and stopped using contractions, I knew something serious was on his mind. I debated between a lingering exit from the tub to give myself time to decide what I wanted to say about our near-death crisis or rushing to my man. The latter choice won out.

The ten minutes it took me to dry off, dress and brush out my hair seemed like forever. Stepping from the bathroom into our bedroom, I expected to see Eric waiting either on our bed or in the comfortably upholstered chaise lounge we regularly used for things other than just sitting. A knot of apprehension twisted in my stomach when I saw he wasn't there.

"Eric?" I called.

His deep, resonant voice carrying easily from the back of the house, he answered, "In the kitchen."

This time I leaned against the doorjamb. I felt a definite emotional spike from Eric as he methodically unpacked groceries from the Culinary Delights cartons that had been delivered while I was bathing. Culinary Delights was another one of those multi-pronged businesses Eric had bankrolled. In fact, it was the very first company in his corporate kingdom, going back to his emigration to the U. S. after World War Two. Since that first weekend last winter I'd spent at his house, and the huge basket of baked goods and flavored coffees he'd had the CD folks deliver for my breakfast, I've been reaping the benefits of their mind-boggling selection of everything edible.

Eric's tall, muscular body was straight but purposely facing away from me. He knew I was only a few feet behind him, and it was his way of staying in control. Seeing him doing something so ordinary and human was somehow comforting. It told me the marriage connection between us was still there.

Closing the refrigerator door, he moved to the counter, his back still to me. "George and Irene sent a welcome home basket along with your grocery order." Reaching into the large picnic basket with its blue and white gingham liner (their trademark in the colors of the Greek flag), he took out a round ovenproof pie dish, turned toward me and smiled, "Are you hungry, Sookie?"

Normally, we would have fallen into each other's arms at such a doubly suggestive question. Instead, Eric's face became whiter. His dark blue eyes blazed in longing then with a blink became closed.

Giving him an out, I said, "If that's Irene's famous Quiche Lorraine, yes."

While I got out silverware and a plate, Eric heated my dinner in the microwave. Settling myself at the small table in the breakfast nook on the other side of the wide central work island, I waited for my very nervous bridegroom as he filled a glass with ice and orange soda. You'd think such a display of domesticity would be cute for a newlywed couple, wouldn't you? After the nightmare we'd been through twenty-four hours ago, it was hard to feel carefree and secure again.

Of all the emotions I've seen and felt from the always-in-control Eric Northman, what came through our blood bond as he sat silently across the table from me was both soothing and terrifying. He continued his poignant silence, giving me time to enjoy bites of the quiche and sips of soda. All the while he watched my hands, I stared at his impassive face sensing what was behind his outward calm.

The slice of quiche only half eaten, I placed the fork on the plate with a noticeable clink. Silent seconds ticked by so I said, "Look at me, Eric."

Doing as I asked, I felt tremendous desolation roll off him through his words, "I beg your forgiveness, my precious wife, for almost taking your life in my blood lust. For a thousand-year-old vampire such a vicious loss of control is untenable. That it was directed toward my blood-bonded mate makes it even more heinous."

Eric's soothing apology gave me a momentary sense of relief. Every time we'd discussed, dissected and resolved an issue over the past three years, a new one would pop up to challenge and threaten what was between us. This was another one of those times. Then the fear that was bouncing back and forth between us, just below the surface of normal speech and action, took over.

Looking directly into my eyes, Eric spoke plainly, "This human marriage was hasty and ill-conceived. I was selfish, wanting you in totality without clear consideration for future consequences."

I had expected those words from him and was prepared to argue his conclusion vehemently. I wasn't expecting the next ones.

"Since the moment I held your almost lifeless body in my arms, I have been determined to speak those words. Now that I have voiced them, I know the subsequent dissolution of our marriage would be the worst mistake."

Startled, I gaped and asked very softly, "Why?"

"Our vows and promises to each other run too deep. We know the very best and worst about each other, now more than ever, and still love one another. I have felt that from you through our bond. If we cannot make a vampire/human marriage work then the bigoted vermin of the Fellowship of The Sun and all the other haters are right."

Smiling, I added, "And we can't let them be right, my love. I'm not the naïve innocent anymore. I made my choice to love you and be with you knowing the risks. If I'd been beyond saving that night, I'd have expected you to turn me so we could stay together for eternity."

In a strong, sure voice, Eric confessed, "I admit I would have done so. Losing you is something I cannot allow. Are we agreed?"

"Yes," I answered, very pleased that another issue between us had been settled to both party's satisfaction.

Reaching across the table, Eric took my left hand in his left hand, our rings joining as our fingers intertwined. "I know nothing can truly make up for what I almost did. However, I wish to give you a gift, something you have always wanted but never believed you would ever possess."

"You've already given me the greatest gift possible, Eric, yourself."

"I do not deserve _you,_ my lover," and he grinned shyly.

That we were so traumatized by almost losing each other showed as we hesitated coming together physically, the table solidly between us. It might take weeks before the fear went away, or it never would. I just couldn't let that stand.

I went behind Eric's chair and draped by arms tenderly around his neck. "We already made our individual New Year's resolutions. I'd like us to make a joint one, that for our first anniversary we'll make our baby."

Eric's body stiffened. "You'd risk our child's life? What if I lost control with him?"

I smiled at Eric's use of the masculine pronoun. His vampire pride had shown a new dimension. "We shouldn't question the right or wrongness of having a child because of fear in any form, mine of losing you, and you of your vampire nature betraying the blood bond you'll have with our child."

"Is that your Christian faith speaking?"

"No, just my belief in the strength we have together."

One of the negatives about the blood bond Eric and I shared was that sometimes the sorting out of our emotions as they grew, resolved and then faded could be confusing. This time there was no confusion in the surety of choice we made together.

In our bedroom, the physical intimacy started out cautious and tender, the beginning touches slow and searching for reassurance. We undressed each other as if we were seeing and feeling the other's body through a wondrous new sensuousness.

I didn't think it was possible to be even more tightly bound than we already were but it was happening as our passion and hunger for each other escalated. The frenzy of need became more powerful with each caress and kiss and thrust of body against body, until we both cried out in ecstasy. The waves of pleasure from our aroused flesh, building then cresting then crashing, again and again, wouldn't stop, until our craving for each other's blood was satisfied. Only when that gift was given, lover to beloved, was the desire quenched. As long as Eric and I were together there was no need to fear any entity on this Earth.

* * *

That was last night. Smiling, I let the sunlight coming through my car windshield warm my face a little longer while the feelings I relived in my mind with my beautiful lover surrounded and enveloped my body.

Stepping out of my Chevy Malibu, I stared at the nondescript gray wall and gray door that marked Fangstasia's location from the back of the shopping center close to Toys "R" Us. The incongruity (the first word from my new Word of the Day calendar) of the two businesses would have been funny if my presence here wasn't so serious.

The call from Bobby Burnham had been cryptic but urgent. Bobby had been Eric's day guy for a couple of years now, and we had some not so great history. Actually, we hated each other. We'd managed to avoid being in the same place at the same time despite my formalized place in Eric's life over this past year. Even through the phone, I could read that he wasn't thrilled that he had to deal with me instead of his boss. He'd always been a clear broadcaster, verbally and mentally. One thing he did know was that Eric wouldn't hesitate to fire him for neglecting his responsibilities to the sheriff of Area Five. If that meant reporting to me, he'd do it, as sullenly as possible.

But I digress. Arriving for his appointment with a prospective vendor, he'd discovered a break-in. The intruder wasn't an ordinary thief but one of the waitresses. What she had been attempting to steal was information from Eric's computer. How she'd gotten into the club in the first place was a question I'd leave for Eric.

Pleased that Bobby had relocked the staff entrance, I used my key to unlock the sturdy door. I went down the hall stopping at Eric's office on the right first. Finding it open _didn't_ please me. Inside I carefully scanned the room for anything out of place. Nothing was missing or where it shouldn't be.

When I did a thorough CSI-evaluation of Eric's desk, the only thing not as it should be was his supposedly heavily protected computer. My man still had a problem picking up after himself at home, but he was compulsively neat and organized in other ways. The very expensive hi tech system had been accessed with a list of what I knew were extremely confidential files and folders showing brightly on the twenty-inch flat screen monitor, just waiting for someone to download all of it. Eric had brought in an expert computer network engineer to set everything up with multiple levels of safeguards and encryptions. Only he and the engineer knew all the secret passwords. Whoever this woman was who had gotten this far into Fangtasia's operating system must have been a genius hacker.

I called the guy who had done the work and arranged for him to get over to the bar to check and reset everything before opening tonight. As I hung up, I could hear him cursing that someone had violated all his safeguards. I guess a geek was entitled to be covetous of his work as much as anyone.

After turning off the tower, which I knew didn't mean much, I stuffed three things into my big handbag: the envelope from Claude with our racy video, the proofs from the new Fangtasia calendar and a copy of the calendar in a tube that Eric had left there before our wedding. Even though I lived with the real thing, I still wanted this year's Mr. January hanging on my wall. Yum! I left the large box with Eric's replacement costume for another trip.

Exiting Eric's office, I started down the hall again. As I approached the heavy door that led to the back of the club area, it opened. Bobby's blue-grey eyes registered startled but recovered quickly. His pale face settled into its familiar stern expression.

Too impatient for chitchat, I asked, "Where is she?"

With a noticeably grim edge to his voice, Bobby growled, "I have her tied to a chair in the bar." He opened the door fully, allowing me to pass swiftly into the heart of Fangtasia.

The spiky-haired brunette with her platinum blond highlights sitting at one of the tables just passed the door wasn't what I'd expected. For one thing, she was older than the usual type that waitressed here. Despite the body-revealing hot pink top and short denim skirt, her face gave away that her teen years had been way back in the 80s.

Bobby had overdone the bindings that held her arms and ankles to the chair. Though I could tell she was tall from her long legs, she couldn't have weighed much more than a hundred pounds. Maybe she'd thought looking so emaciated was the right image for a waitress at a vampire bar?

I was surprised that she looked directly at me with no trace of fear. "Do you know who I am?"

Her face remained impassive, but her words were venomous, "You're Northman's human whore."

I ignored the sharp intake of breath from Bobby. Resisting the urge to backhand her across the face, I smiled, "You should be so lucky." Even though I was still a little off my feed, an anger-fueled slap from me might have dislocated a vertebrate in her neck thanks to my daily doses of Eric's super-blood. Turning to Bobby, I said, "Untie her arms, please."

Roughly, he did as I asked. After the usual wrist rubbing and smirking, she went back to glaring at me.

I drew up a chair and made myself comfortable. Folding my hands non-threateningly on the table, I asked politely, "You're Audrey, right?" She nodded, a sullen look taking over for the glare. "So tell me, Audrey, what were you trying to find in my husband's computer?"

"Anything we could use to bring him down."

"And who are 'we'?"

Up until then I'd been very careful to read her with only the lightest touch. My last question had hit a danger zone and I felt her mind clamp shut. Pressing deeper, I encountered an odd resistance, like a wall of insulation, soft but able to keep out the cold of mind probes.

Opening my hands, palms up, I smiled again. "Your hands, please?" When Audrey ignored me, I turned to Bobby and nodded.

Eric's gofer was a jerk in plenty of ways, but his slender, well-toned body was strong and aggressive. He grabbed both her arms from behind and slammed them onto the table so fast I was startled. Once I had a strong grip on her forearms, he locked onto her shoulders, holding her body in place for me.

"Now, let's start again. Who are you working for?"

I'd encountered many types of minds since I became entangled with the supernatural world three years ago. Vamps were blank spaces due to their lack of brainwaves. I'd found the peace and quiet of their presence a wonder even though many of them couldn't be trusted. Their company fitted me like a second skin the longer I was around them. I wouldn't have found love with Eric or a life outside Bon Temps without their existence. My blood bond connection with Eric was very different, controlled by our emotions rather than our minds. The one time I'd caught a glimpse of his mind was so long ago before I really knew who he was, it didn't matter. Weres and shifters had tangled and snarly balls of mental string I could get through only if they let me. The fae were closed to me, a condition I've suspected was for the best.

Humans were my nemesis. I'd learned far too much about my own kind because of my telepathy. I admit that I've become more and more tired of their foibles and hypocrisies. Don't get me wrong. I'm not planning on giving up my kind altogether. My ability to shield myself from them so I can work with and be around them had grown much stronger over the past year. Ultimately, my gift was useful for protecting those I loved.

This human, who had been put through some type of brainwashing, was going to let me in no matter how far I had to go to learn her secrets. Instead of a direct assault on her mind, I began peeling away at the barrier I'd felt like searching through a huge, smelly onion for the boll weevil hiding at its rotting heart.

After much practice and experimenting, my way of reading other people had become very simple: a careful, non-threatening process of putting the person at ease. It helped to build trust between me and the other party making my work a lot easier. When only a couple of the imaginary onion layers had fallen away, I realized this encounter was too fraught with my anger at almost losing Eric. As my mind bore down harder, Audrey's mental defenses began to crumble along with the defiance she had plastered all over her face since our eyes first met. The layers of protection dissolved with increasing speed as the invisible wall disintegrated and finally crumbled. It was like watching a really dead vampire fall apart flake by harmless flake.

Now that Audrey's brain was unprotected, I was prepared to go all out to find the answers I wanted from her. Instead, I hit a solid wall. I've encountered glamoured minds before. This was nothing like those excised spaces as if a surgical procedure had been done on the person's memory. What I was feeling was much too sophisticated for normal brainwashing or even hypnotism. Maybe she was under a witch's spell?

My frustration finally took over. And so did that spark of fairy magic I had suspected was in my one-quarter fae genes. A burst of unusual energy went through my whole body. Without any qualms, I opened that new supernatural part of me and began pounding at the wall in Audrey's head. I felt the power build like lightening bolts from a fierce summer storm. That same old Sookie who was such a good Christian most times didn't care how much I was hurting this stupid human with my claw-like grip on her arms and in her mind. Not even the growing rivulets of blood dripping onto the table from her eyes, nose and arms stopped my rage-fed relentlessness.

Audrey's high-pitched scream filled the dark bar causing Bobby to cover his ears as I continued twisting her brain to my will. With a final note of terror, her voice cracked. I smiled as all her blocked memories came pouring out, vision after vision, like a slide show of images in 3-D and living color. Familiar places and people mixed with the unknown in a kaleidoscope of orderly, changing events.

Exhausted, Audrey collapsed across the table when I released her arms. With the cool precision of a seasoned torturer, I took the wet towel Bobby had gotten from behind the bar and cleaned my bloody hands.

"What do you want me to do with her, Mrs. Northman?"

Bobby's expression was a surprise. His pale face was unusually animated, his grin accentuating the scattered freckles across his cheeks and nose. At another time and place I would have enjoyed his respectful capitulation to my place in Eric's life. Wanting to get home before Eric rose for the night, I answered him coldly, "Call the police and have her arrested for breaking and entering and whatever other charges you can come up with."

Still grinning, he answered, "Yes, ma'am!"

With one last hate-filled glance at the creature whose mind I had forced open so successfully, I stood, picked up my handbag from beside my chair and left quickly by the back door. Before pulling out of the parking lot, I texted Pam. My message was short and sweet: "Meet me at the house right after sunset. We have vampire business to discuss."

As I drove, I made a very out-of-character promise to myself that the person responsible for the assassination attempt on my bonded's life would not live to try again.


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 3

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice – The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 3

I could hear them talking as I came down the hall from my light-sealed bedroom. The closer I drew to our sprawling open living room at the center of the house, the sharper the nuances in each female voice became, Pam's still lightly accented British and Sookie's sweet Louisiana lilt. Hearing those soothing voices from two women I loved so much, I acknowledged again how grateful I was to still be a functioning immortal.

The emotion-laden conversation they were having about the events of the last two days ended abruptly when Sookie saw me stop in the archway between the living room and the hall.

With the same grace she demonstrated in her dancing, my wife was at my side, her hand symbolically covering my silent heart. "Are you hungry, Eric?" she smiled lovingly.

I felt her joy at my presence, but also an underlying anxiety at the state of my vampire health. There was no hiding the fact that I still wasn't up to snuff as they say. That my day sleep had lasted almost an hour longer than it should have was proof of my nagging fatigue. "A TrueBlood, please, dearest."

Sookie's immediate disappointment mixed with a wife's practical concern came through loud and clear from her very open emotions. She wanted me to feed from her both for the intimacy it would bring to our bond as well as for the added strength I would gain from her part-fairy blood. I couldn't hide my current weakened state from her, so I understood her need to give me her special sustenance.

Caressing her neck, I kissed her mouth tenderly. "When we are alone, my lover. I promise." I _would_ keep my promise to my beloved. Contributing to my own unease, those same open emotions were overflowing with _her_ still-fragile recovery from my loss of control. Dr. Ludwig had said very small amounts of my blood would be good for her, but I couldn't give her as much as she needed due to my less than vampire-perfect state. I hoped she would agree to an unusual request from me.

A quick smile and Sookie went down the hall toward the kitchen. In the living room, Pam and I sat across from each other, she on one of the deep, fawn-colored leather single chairs, while I stretched out on the rich chestnut brown leather loveseat, my bare feet easily touching the thick arm at the opposite end.

With a bright smile, Pam said, "It's good to have you back, Eric."

Laughing lightly, I responded, "There's no place like home." Knowing Sookie would be back soon with my liquid dinner, I said in a soft voice, "I have a favor to ask, Pam, and please don't feel you have to obey." I quickly explained what I hoped she would agree to. With a very warm smile, she consented just as Sookie came into the room.

After handing me the bottle of TrueBlood, my wife fitted herself snugly against my long body. My first gulps of the synthetic blood quenched the sharp hunger I hadn't realized was so strong in me. With my next long drink, I couldn't help noticing a familiar but oddly out of place animal scent. "I smell Weres outside."

Her voice in that cool matter-of-fact mode Sookie had perfected in recent months, she said, "Your bodyguards, courtesy of the Long Tooth pack. I don't know how it happened, but word sure spread pretty fast through the vamp and supe communities about the attempt on your life. With all the fresh hate showing up since the Weres and shifters came out, Alcide says it's time we looked after each other, not just our own kind."

After a very skeptical and lengthy moment of silence, I said, "And I'm the test case." Weres were good to have around for humans. I'd discovered that during Sookie's Club Dead adventure. But for vamps? The human cliché of oil on water was far too tame for the clash of our two supernatural races that had been blood-loving haters of each other for centuries. Fire and gasoline was more appropriate.

Ignoring my frown, my overly eager child jumped into the silence. "Sam Merlotte's shifter chapter here in Shreveport volunteered to organize "live" security at the club during the day since the Weres will be concentrating on your house. It's time we go for that bodyguard service we've talked about, Eric. We have an interesting pool of volunteers already." She waited for my reaction, her quizzical look increasing when my facial expression showed my growing displeasure.

Into the tense atmosphere, Sookie sat up and quietly added, "I've asked Amelia to do some of her warding magic here and at the club, Eric."

I nodded to her then turned to Pam. "After the break-in, extra security at Fangtasia is a good move. I'll call Sam and thank him personally. As for this house, even the Weres are too conspicuous. They make us noticed. I had this sprawling, comfortable ranch built on this isolated piece of land because I enjoy both my luxury _and_ my privacy. The current security I have in place is non-intrusive and substantial."

The words were barely out of my mouth when Pam thoughtlessly rushed into her own idea of what I should do to protect myself. "That was fine when you first came here sixty years ago. Now you're a prominent sheriff, and an easy target. You really should move to one of those secure gated communities."

Sookie's jump of apprehension at my soon-to-erupt anger was obvious through our bond, but she didn't try to divert me. "Those places are too much like a prison with their high fences and locked gates all around the property. They also invite all the wrong types of scrutiny." When I saw that my child had missed the hints I was giving her about this distasteful topic, and was about to pursue her suggestion, I let the anger go into justified outrage. "I won't be driven from my home! A craven vampire stole my life and ripped me away from everyone I loved a millennia ago! I won't allow another vampire to do that to me again!"

The shock on Pam's face brought her to her knees on the floor in front of me. Her head deeply bowed, she whispered, "Please forgive me, master. I had no right. You are my maker. Do with me as you will."

Only my beloved wife's steady, soothing affection kept me from saying the harsh words that had risen to my lips. Her touch on my mind reminded me that my child had also suffered the same fear of losing me that she had. Pam's love for me was of a different kind than Sookie's, but no less intense and meaningful.

Leaning forward, I raised her face so that we could look each other in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Pam. I know you were only thinking of my best interests." Lightly, I kissed her cheek. Only then did she look up at me. She smiled radiantly, drinking in my forgiveness. In that moment I truly felt like a parent.

"The Weres can stay, for now," I concluded as I lay back against the loveseat again. "So, tell me about your latest adventure, Mrs. Northman?"

While Pam settled herself cross-legged on the floor, Sookie sat between my outstretched legs so she could look at both of us directly.

"I should have kept my mental mouth shut about how quiet things were for us," Sookie sighed heavily.

My anger dissipated, I clearly sensed an underlying conflict of guilt and anger running through her over something that had happened that day. Firmly, I ran my hand soothingly up and down Sookie's back before she became more agitated. "All the blame for this escalated situation is mine. As sheriff it was my responsibility to find the spies and deal with them immediately. I allowed personal matters to lull me into a false sense of security. I have put all of you in danger."

"And yourself," Pam added firmly.

With Pam's truthful comment, my admission of guilt was reeking of self-flagellation so I ended it. I was more concerned about Sookie's emotional state, and asked, "What did you learn from Audrey, dearest?"

"Who the Bon Temps spy ringleader is – Arlene. I'm ashamed to admit it, but my home town has its own share of haters."

"It's the Fellowship of the Sun behind this plot to bring Eric down?" Pam asked skeptically.

I snorted loudly then put my derision into words, "Their combined intelligence could never organize and execute such a complex plan. They are just tools. Did my former employee reveal who she was reporting to?"

Sookie laughed harshly. "Her vampire lover. A guy named Ramon."

"I remember him!" Pam exclaimed excitedly. "He's been coming into the club on and off for the last few months. Thick dark hair, swarthy complexion and piercing blue/green eyes. Very striking."

"That's him," Sookie said. "Do you think he might be on one of the surveillance disks?"

"Probably. His hot good looks drew plenty of attention from the fangbangers. He'd have drinks with a selection of them regularly. Whether he rendezvoused with any of them after hours, I don't know."

"From the steamy visions I got from her mind, Audrey was his regular after-hours meal."

I found the girl-talk amusing so I let them continue. As long as my woman only used another female's experiences of sex with a vampire to fantasize by, I would make sure I reaped the benefits. Even a thousand-year-old vampire could learn something new. Although, that was highly unlikely.

"If Audrey isn't really with the Fellowship and has vamp connections, who's behind all this?" Pam wondered aloud.

I exchanged glances with Sookie while images from the Vegas meeting last summer flashed through my mind. "De Castro," I answered. "I need to find out details about the assassin they sent after me. Unless I can link all these incidents together, I don't have enough to bring charges against anyone in a vampire tribunal."

"Oh, I forgot! I brought a package that came for you, Eric. It's from the hotel in Vancouver. Maybe they found some information about him. I assume it was a he?"

"Yes, and he was staying at the hotel. I'd sensed him but without realizing what it was I was feeling." To myself I admitted I was too busy enjoying lengthy nights of mind-blowing sex with my new wife to listen to my vampire instincts.

"I'll go back to Fangtasia and get the security recordings for the last two months. I know Ramon is there somewhere."

"I'm so mad I couldn't uncover more of the pieces to this sleazy puzzle. I got a definite sense when I was mucking through the bitch's mind that she's only one cog in a very secretive organized cell. Her part in this plot, whatever it was, is only a tiny tip of a gigantic iceberg."

"Maybe Rasul knows something," Pam stated innocently.

"Rasul is here in Shreveport?" Sookie asked in surprise.

"He arrived late last night. He wants to meet with you, Eric."

My well-honed suspicion meter went off loudly. "Why?"

Shrugging, Pam answered, "He said it's hush-hush and confidential, for your ears only."

My vampire mental faculties weren't as weak as I'd thought they were, and my decision came quickly. "Tell him to be at the club tomorrow night at seven."

Pam nodded, "Okay, boss." Into the silence that filled the room while Sookie held my curious and questioning eyes about her adventure with Audrey, Pam announced, "In this crisis, I'll let Alec know I have to reschedule my vacation. He's a sheriff too so he'll understand."

"That's not necessary, Pam. You've earned the time off. Sookie and I will put together a plan. A cell of our own spies is definitely called for here." With a gentle smile, I added, "Tell Alec I could use one of Father Colgan's special blessings right now."

"I will. And thank you, Eric," my sweet child smiled gratefully.

The peace and contentment that was flowing around the three of us gave me the opening I needed for the intimate request I had for my wife. "I'm going to ask a very delicate favor of you, Sookie. Pam has agreed to give you some of her vampire blood to help you regain your full strength. I want…_hope_ you will accept it."

The shocked look on my wife's face had nothing to do with any prejudice against taking blood from a vampire. Her expression was clearly a reflection of the heavy anxiety I felt deep inside her at her human frailty. She had been so afraid to admit her continuing physical weakness for fear of increasing my guilt.

My arms went around her warm, precious body. She in turn wrapped her arms around my waist and clung, as she never had, not even New Year's morning after I had almost killed her.

"Please, my beloved. You need this to fully recover. I would give you more if I could, but the quantity you need would simply weaken me again."

I felt Sookie's body shake with the beginning of tears. Slowly, she reached up and caressed my cheek then turned to Pam.

"Pam, my dear friend and child to my husband, would you give that same gift to your sire so he can be fully healed for us?"

A single red tear leaked from Pam's left eye and made its way down her cheek to her chin. "It would be my honor."

* * *

"_They let her go on bail, Eric. Stupid humans!"_

I allowed my resignation to flow through over the phone, "The Fellowship's cadre of lawyers know how to use the established system to their benefit."

"_Sookie should have killed the bitch when she had the chance."_

My child's vehemence confirmed what I suspected about my sweet wife's interrogation methods. "She was only a tool. The vamps will make sure she's never seen again."

"_Whatever. Any luck with the surveillance disks, ours and the ones from the hotel?"_

"Not yet," I lied.

"_How is Sookie now that she's had my blood?"_

"Much better. She fell asleep soon after you left."

_"She needs it. I gave Rasul his instructions. Bobby will be at the club with him." _With what they call a pregnant pause, she added_, "Are you sure you don't want me to stay, boss?"_

"Yes, I'm sure."

_"Well, I'm off to the airport. Keep me posted."_

I snickered. Once a second-in-command, always a second-in-command. "I will. You and Alec have fun."

_"We will!" _Laughing obscenely, she hung up.

Despite the more than two centuries I'd known her, being Pam's maker gave me certain advantages. The one I liked best was that I could lie to her, repeatedly, and get away with it.

My first lie had been about the surveillance disks. I now had faces and names for both vampires. Not that the information had done me much good so far.

I stared at the main page screen of the vampire database with its glowing cursor and pressed a search inquiry again as if I expected a different answer from the ones I'd received previously regarding both Ramon and my deceased assassin, an Asian vamp named Joseph Cho.

**'No matches found. Please reset your criteria and resubmit'**

"Fuck!" I yelled into the quiet air of my home office. The profanity didn't ease my rabid frustration.

Compton's database was far from complete. There were vamps across the globe who still kept in deep shadows, some out of fear, some simply in defiance of their superiority in the human world. What pissed me off most (a phrase I'd picked up from my spunky woman) was just how convenient it was that these two along with my late, unlamented maker, Appius Livius Ocella, were among the missing.

I exited the database and returned the disk to its simply labeled plastic case. I picked up the disk I'd made with stills of Ramon and Cho taken from the surveillance recordings. Depending on why he was here, I might show their likenesses to Rasul tomorrow night at our meeting.

Like Sookie, Pam's blood had rejuvenated me, restoring most of my full vampire strength and mental abilities. Unlike Sookie, who had fallen into a deep sleep as her body repaired itself, I had needed to work.

Leaning back in my desk chair, I felt a surprising twinge of fatigue again. The bone-chilling cold that had taken hold of me after my near-death despite all the blood I'd taken from Sookie and the bottles of TrueBlood I'd gorged on had left me colder than my undead body had ever experienced. That I could feel the difference had been frightening.

The cold had been more than a physical manifestation of blood-loss trauma. It was tied to the terror I had felt while I waited for my beloved to awake. My shame at my loss of control had almost overwhelmed me. I had felt her fragile, wavering life force slipping away. Only our blood bond had brought me to my senses in the moments before the last spark of life was gone from Sookie's body. In a rigidly focused panic, I had used my emotions and my voice to reach her through our bond.

Part of what I'd told Pam about Sookie was true, that she'd fallen asleep soon after my child had left. Like me she was almost herself again, but not quite. I wondered if the lingering deficiency we felt in each other was a true reflection of our bodily conditions, or a cover for the fear of loss that had traumatized each of us that night. With my reawakened human emotions I knew it was imperative that we find who was after me and quickly.

"She needs to laugh again," I said softly to myself. "And so do I."

As if some stray thought from me had reached into our bedroom, an ear-shattering scream filled the house, frighteningly similar to Sookie's torture terror nightmares. Seconds later, I was on our bed pulling my wife's flailing body against me, clinging to her as she had clung to me earlier. Instinctively, I buried my face in the hollow of her neck, this time keeping my fangs tightly retracted. In a very human gesture, I entangled both my hands in her long, thick blond hair using it as an anchor to the immortality I realized I wasn't truly sure of since that night in the snow.

In imitation of my ravening bloodlust, Sookie sank her teeth into my neck, while leaving deep nail gouges down my bare chest. The pain was excruciating, but I took it on, allowing only my love for her to reach through our bond. As she sucked in my blood to nourish and heal herself, I felt her body's balance move away from the remaining threads of its crisis.

With one last heavy pull on my neck, Sookie's teeth let go. Leaning back against my arm, she looked up at me. Her heavily blood-smeared lips smiled, "Thank you, my lover."

I returned the smile joyfully. "Welcome back, my beloved."

Putting her fingers against my lips, I covered them with my saliva that she carefully and gently applied to the oozing wounds on my neck, and the ones on my chest that had already begun to heal.

A euphoric bliss surrounded us from our freshly renewed blood bond. In the sweetest, most loving voice my woman had ever used, she said, "Please tell me the story of how you came here to Louisiana again, and don't leave out any details this time."

I laughed lightly. "You know most of it already. Soon after the end of the war in 1945, Sophie-Anne offered me the position of sheriff for Area Five. The Old World had changed so much, and I had lost so many friends because of the latest human insanity there, I needed a change. I had achieved great wealth and an unimpeachable reputation for business management and organization from my centuries with the European Consortium. I'd been back and forth between the two continents many times once sea and air power made travel for vampires quick and comfortable. I could have easily found a place in one of the major metropolitan cities, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles. The pace and friendliness of Louisiana appealed to my long-suppressed love of country life."

"Is that why you chose this land and built this house?"

"After all the centuries of hiding, I wanted a place where I could breathe freely and be myself. Where I could surround myself with books and music and art, mixing the best of the Old World with what I found here. I wanted a huge garden filled with all the beauty of this Earth. What I've created here makes up for all the darkness I've had to endure since I was turned."

"This is why you've always understood my love for my family home," Sookie sighed contentedly.

"It's why I've become attached to it also."

To my surprise, Sookie offered me her wrist. Very gently, I broke her winter-white skin and drew in a small, sweet quantity of her blood. With a shiver of delight, I withdrew my fangs and licked the small puncture marks to seal them.

"Having you here with me is the ultimate culmination of my dream." We kissed softly then I said, "Thank you for not interfering between Pam and me. You intervened in the appropriate way."

"We're family. Family doesn't take sides against each other. At least, that's what I believe."

"Since we lost part of our honeymoon, how would you like to spend a few days in Bon Temps? We'll leave tomorrow night as soon as my meeting with Rasul is over."

Attempting to stifle a yawn, Sookie said, "I would love that."

"I know you need to get back on a human daytime schedule before you start your new job so I'll say good night, lover. I'll be right here beside you when you wake in the morning."

We hugged, reluctantly letting go of each other. As I stood in the doorway, I watched Sookie roll over into her comfortable fetal position, her nightshirt hiking up and exposing her strong, shapely legs. I could feel when she was fully asleep.

Back in my office, I went to the list of contact numbers on my cell and chose the one for Merlotte's. I knew it was still early enough to catch Sam before he closed for the night.

As soon as he picked up, I said, "Sam, it's Eric. I have a favor to ask for Friday night."

* * *

Looking across my desk at the smiling Rasul, his rich coffee-brown eyes belying the single-minded fighter he had been in Sophie-Anne's service for so many decades, I was almost tempted to let my guard down. Despite the carnage, the battle at the formal ball that night in New Orleans fifteen months ago had been one of the most invigorating fights I had ever participated in.

In his lively, exotic accent, Rasul said, "It was a pleasure seeing the beautiful Sookie again here in your establishment. Congratulations on your marriage, sheriff."

I repressed a smirk. Sookie had been right to call him a charmer. I hadn't experienced his famous sense of humor yet, however. I suspected the business he was here for took precedence tonight.

"Thank you, Rasul. So, what is so confidential that Victor sent his head of security to my area?"

The smile evaporated from Rasul's swarthy Middle Eastern face. "I am here on the direct order of our sovereign, Felipe de Castro, to become your personal bodyguard."

A number of sarcastic responses crossed my mind before I settled on, "Victor doesn't have enough assassins targeting my back already?" The implied insult was brazen, but I needed to know the truth of his mission.

Carefully reaching into the inside pocket of his impeccably tailored sport jacket, Rasul extracted a plain white envelope and handed it to me. "Our king sent me here to prevent another incident like the one that almost ended your long vampire existence in Vancouver."

After an unusually long staring match, I opened the envelope. I read through the eight landscape-formatted Excel spreadsheet pages of names, dates, locations, explanatory notes and comments. The oldest entry was dated just before the Rhodes summit and described a grisly traffic accident that had resulted in the decapitation of a vampire sheriff in Washington State. At first the document appeared to be a list of dead vampires. As I continued reading, I realized its purpose was much more chilling. The last entry was my name. The note in the comments column was, "Assassination attempt failed."

Into the silence, Rasul said, "The King of Nevada considers you too valuable to lose to the likes of Victor Madden and his personal agenda."

My eyebrows came together automatically at this revelation. "And what is Victor's personal agenda?"

"De Castro is still investigating that. As Victor's chief of security in New Orleans, it has become increasingly obvious to me that he is only one small part of a larger conspiracy."

I couldn't help laughing. "This sounds like a scenario directly out of a Cold War spy novel. What's next, a ring of trained assassins to do the enemy organization's bidding?"

"You've heard of the Darkover Society from the Middle Ages?"

This time I couldn't laugh. "A secret society of rogue vampires for hire. They killed hundreds of humans as well as vampires during those centuries. The purpose of the death didn't matter to them, only the money it brought into their coffers." Angrily, I added, "They were wiped out in the eighteenth century. I know because I was part of the Consortium's extermination squad."

"A new generation with new bosses."

My brain was shifting back and forth in time and memories so swiftly I was unable to remain seated. While I made three circuits around my office sorting out the current facts I had just been given, Rasul followed me with his darkly intent eyes. The spreadsheet had identified me as one vampire on a very long hit list. The "why" was such a tremendous question, I needed more time to ponder and plan a strategy.

Finally, I sat on the edge of my desk facing my visitor. In a politely dismissive tone, I said, "You have delivered your warning honorably, Rasul. On my behalf, please thank our sovereign for his concern and confidence when you are back in Las Vegas."

Rasul was noticeably shorter than I in stature. As he stood up in front of me, his lean, hard-muscled soldier's body made up for the difference in sheer mass. "I accepted this assignment from our sovereign with the understanding that I be freed from his and Victor's service so I could pledge my allegiance to you fully and freely." Going to one knee, he continued, "I ask you to accept my oath of fealty, Eric Northman, Sheriff of Area Five, to live and work under your authority and protection for the duration of my life," and he bowed his head deeply.

Knowing it was the correct action to take, I placed my hand on Rasul's tightly crimped ebony hair. "I accept your pledge and welcome you into my service, Rasul."

The younger vampire's brilliant white-toothed smile spread across his face. "Master."

His voice was so impressively respectful and powerful at the same time there was no doubt in my mind that he had meant each and every word of his pledge. Then something he had said about Victor in our conversation piqued my curiosity. Keeping a straight face, I asked, "How do you know Victor is part of this larger conspiracy?"

Rising from the floor, Rasul grinned. "My gift, which I have kept to myself since I was turned almost two centuries ago, is that I can tell when another vampire is lying."

I grinned back. "That will be a very helpful talent to me. Thank you." Going back to the other side of my desk, I loaded my homemade disk into its proper tower slot. When the screencaps of the mystery vampire from Vancouver came up, I motioned to Rasul. "Do you know this vampire?" He watched patiently while I clicked through each pose I'd taken from the hotel surveillance disks, enlarging them for better viewing.

"No," Rasul answered. "Is he the assassin?"

"Was," I grunted coldly, again feeling my thin stake rip into the hireling's heart. I switched over to the clearer screencaps of Audrey's vampire lover.

"Ramon," Rasul growled deep in his throat. "He does _special_ jobs for Victor."

"He was the control for a human who worked here as a waitress. She was caught hacking my office computer."

"I'm sure she's dead, and he's gone to ground."

I flipped open my cell phone and called Sookie's cell. "Sookie, send Bobby in. Be ready to leave as soon as we come out." I smiled at the suggestive request my lover made from the booth out front. "I think I can manage that, Mrs. Northman," I answered softly.

A quick knock and Bobby was in my office ready for his orders. He'd done a complete turnaround in his behavior since I'd come back, abandoning the sullen, excessively serious tone that irritated just about everyone, especially Sookie. I planned on asking her if she'd had anything to do with my human associate's transformation when we were in Bon Temps.

While I shut down my computer and slipped the CD and some papers including the spreadsheet from Rasul into my briefcase, I snapped out orders. "Bobby, you are to drive my new vampire associate to the guest house on the cul-de-sac and see that he's settled. That includes a generous supply of TrueBlood, and a visit to Baron's Clothiers tonight. Give him a set of keys for his permanent use, and one of the extra cell phones fully programmed with all the numbers he will need. Tomorrow, go to Brennan Livery and arrange for a long-term rental car for him. Make, model and color are to be his choice."

His grin still in place, Bobby nodded vigorously and said, "Yes, sir."

Turning to Rasul, I tempered my voice. "Once you've evaluated the security system, call me with your report. If everything is in order, you can begin your primary duty as my new bodyguard. Bobby will give you directions to Sookie's place in Bon Temps." I looked from Rasul's impassive vampire face to Bobby's naturally pale human face made brighter by his shock of strawberry blond hair. "Any questions, gentlemen?"

"No, sir!" Bobby said happily.

"No, sheriff," and Rasul bowed his head respectfully.

With a subdued smile, I said, "By the way, be careful of the Weres patrolling the grounds."

The two disparate beings exchanged glances while I laughed heartily and went to meet my woman.


	4. Chapter 4

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 4

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice-The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: Sorry this chapter took so long.

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 4

For a Friday night, Merlotte's was unusually quiet Beth Owens mused. Even for a cold January night, there should have been more of the usual crowd of Bon Temps citizens celebrating the end of a workweek.

From behind the bar, her sharp blue-grey shifter eyes traveled from the two occupied booths along the sidewall to the single table with its two occupants. She wasn't worried about a slow night in terms of the day's receipts being off. The special group party Sam had arranged at Eric's request would more than make up for it. In the six months she'd known the vampire sheriff of Area Five, one thing stood out: he was exceptionally generous to his loyal friends.

Beth put the pitcher of beer and glasses of house wine, one white, one rose, on the tray Holly was waiting for. "There ya go, hun. After you serve the party table, you can head out. That sweet guy of yours has been very patiently waiting for you."

Laughing, Holly said, "You sure, Beth?"

"As soon as that other table is vacated, Sam will be closing early. Once our guest of honor arrives, we'll be partying!"

"Thanks," Holly smiled. Picking up the tray, she headed for the center booth that had been set up with two long tables added at the open end for all the guests they were expecting.

Holly served the two couples at the party table with the ease and efficiency of an experienced barmaid then joined her fiancé Hoyt Fortenberry two booths down. He had been in boisterous conversation with Jason Stackhouse since they'd come in together.

Only the scent of Sam's Brut aftershave warned Beth when he came up behind her. "Is Sookie here yet?" he asked anxiously.

"Nope." Taking a long, hard look at her shifter fiancé, Beth asked, "Why're you so jumpy, Sam?"

He inclined his head toward the other side of the room where Bon Temps' resident vampire had been quietly talking with the town's newest citizen, Stephanie Blair. "Bill Compton hasn't been here in months. Tonight he shows up when Sookie and Eric are due any minute."

Sam wasn't the type to swear. Instead Beth noticed his jawbone become more prominent as he clenched his teeth. Knowing how to break his tense mood, she grinned, "Merlotte's Law."

His dark scowl quickly faded into a loving smile. In seconds they were both laughing. "I sent Antoine home. If any of the assorted humans and supernaturals who eat regular food get hungry, I'll man the kitchen myself."

"I have enough party foods to keep everybody happy. And plenty of TrueBlood for the vamps. I'm glad Eric warned us there were two more coming."

"What would I do without you." He slipped his arm around Beth's waist and pulled her close against his hard muscled chest.

Beth took in a lustful breath as her hands enjoyed the ripple of her man's pecs through his plaid flannel shirt. Sam wasn't that tall for a guy, but the package he came in, from head to toe, was amazing, especially for a tiny woman like her. "Tell me again why you love me, Mr. Merlotte."

He laughed deep in his chest. "I'd rather show you later, Miss Owens."

They'd agreed right from the start of their relationship that public displays of affection were off limits in the bar during regular work hours. Tonight seemed to have a very special sparkle in the air so they let a deeper hug and a slow brush of a kiss just happen. When they heard the front door opening, they moved apart.

The tall, dark-haired jeans-clad vampire who sauntered over to the bar greeted them effusively, "Hey, Sam. Good to see ya again."

"Bubba! Haven't seen you in a coon's age. Where've you been?" Sam asked holding out his hand. Bubba was the only vampire he knew of who would shake hands.

"Oh, here and there. This here's my old buddy Rasul from New Orleans. Mr. Eric asked me to show him around Bon Temps then bring him here for the party." With a big smile he patted the younger vampire on the shoulder. "How you doin', Miss Beth?"

"Fine and dandy, Bubba. Nice to meet you, Rasul. I'm Sam's fiancé."

"Sookie's description of you was so thorough, I'd recognize you anywhere." With a broad smile he bowed his head chivalrously.

Beth snickered at the vampire's flirtatiousness and smiled back.

"Drinks, gentlemen?" Sam asked.

"Got any of that new A-B negative flavor? It's supposed to be pretty close to cat blood I heard."

Repressing what would have been a loud guffaw, Sam got the TrueBlood out of the small refrigerator, uncapped it and put it in the microwave. "Rasul?"

With a straight face, Rasul answered, "I prefer the O positive. It has a richer bouquet.

Bubba's blank expression was too much for the other three. Their laughter bubbled out so freely, everyone in the bar turned to look at them. When the nine other people in the room saw that nothing really interesting was going on, they all went back to their drinks and table conversations.

Putting the second warmed bottle down in front of Rasul, Sam said, "I hear you're working for Eric now."

"Yes, as his personal bodyguard. Where he goes, I go."

Finishing a series of swallows from the TrueBlood bottle, Bubba smacked his lips approvingly. "Miss Sookie was running late tonight. That's why Mr. Eric sent Rasul and me on a tour of the town."

"How long ago was that?" Beth couldn't resist asking.

Looking at his watch, Rasul grinned. "Over an hour."

Sam cleared his throat. They now knew the real reason why Sookie and Eric were "running late".

Beth filled in the conversational void by suggesting that Bubba take Rasul over to the party table and introduce him to Alcide, Amelia, Tara and JB.

* * *

In the other occupied booth, Hoyt and Holly had been chattering away about their wedding plans.

"I know things were kind of a mess between us for awhile. Now that we're okay again, I really do want you to stand up for me at our wedding."

"I want that too, Jason. You and Hoyt have been close since you were kids."

The happy young couple waited for Jason's answer to their request. When none came, Hoyt demanded in an anxious voice, "Will you or won't you be my best man, Jason Stackhouse?"

His eyes glued to the table where Bill Compton sat with his very attractive young companion, Jason said, "You think she's his new girlfriend?"

Noticing Holly's disgusted frown, Hoyt nervously rushed to get his old friend back in her good graces. "Her name's Stephanie Blair. She's from up north, somewhere in New England, I think. She just opened a preschool and daycare center on Walnut Street. Mr. Compton bankrolled the project. He feels the young'uns and their working parents in Bon Temps need it. She's a classy, educated gal, Jason. It's strictly business between them."

With a grin, Jason said, "Then maybe she'd like to dance."

Jason wasn't halfway across the room when Holly grabbed Hoyt's arm. "Let's head home."

Without a word, Hoyt followed her out the door. He sighed. He was going to have to mend fences again.

At the jukebox, Jason loaded the machine with quarters. Checking over the long list of songs, he found some new selections Sam had recently added along with the popular old standards no one got tired of listening to. He avoided picking any slow songs, instead choosing three of his favorite fast tempo numbers so he could show off his country two-step dance skills.

Hoyt had said the new gal in town was a northerner. He'd be happy to show her how country dancing was done. This beautiful creature with her powder blue eyes and glowing smile was too special for his old manwhore games. He wanted to do things right this time like he'd told Sookie just before he'd walked his sister down the hallway to be married to Eric. If she could find real love, so could he.

With the first notes of Jimmy Buffet's "Hello Texas", Jason walked up to the single table. He almost chickened out when vampire Bill gave him that dark-eyed threatening glare he'd become known for over the past year.

Something, a feeling so welcoming and encouraging, gave him the confidence to ask, "Excuse me for intruding, Mr. Compton. I was wondering if Miss Blair would like to dance?"

Before the vampire could answer with the unpleasant retort Jason could read on his face, Stephanie's sweet, bell-like voice said, "Miss Blair would like that very much, Mr. Stackhouse."

The small dance floor to the left of the jukebox seemed a mile away as Jason escorted Stephanie from the table. Even on his first ever date with a girl, he hadn't been this nervous. Fighting the tight knot in his stomach, he turned to the radiant woman beside him, smiled and put his right hand on her left shoulder. With a return smile, she placed her left arm along his and firmly closed her fingers on his shoulder. Their remaining hands twined, and they took their first steps. In a few quick movements, they were in perfect rhythm, proceeding counterclockwise around the limited floor space in a smooth, gliding motion.

Jason felt like he was flying, and it had nothing to do with the tempo of the music. He led and she followed with a flair and spirit that only came to a couple with long experience of dancing together.

The last notes sounded much too soon and he had to let her go. Their breathing slowing, Jason said, "For a northern girl, you sure can two-step!"

"My mom was from east Texas, just over the border from here. Even though she and my dad moved to Connecticut before I was born, she made sure I knew what being a country girl was all about."

"I'm mighty glad she did," Jason said softly. "Hey, we're having a special party here tonight. My sister, brother-in-law and a bunch of old friends. When your business with Mr. Compton is over, I'd really like you to join us."

"Actually, our business is done. He has some other business with a Mr. Northman. That's why he's still here."

Puzzled, Jason commented, "That's Eric, my brother-in-law. He should be here soon." Changing the subject in a heartbeat, Jason grinned, "So, will you stay?"

"I'd like that very much."

Blue eyes flashed with blue eyes. The Eagles were already several bars into "Lyin' Eyes". Without hesitation, Jason put his hand on Stephanie's shoulder again. This time, her hand came to rest at his waist. The slower tempo easily added to the sweet intimacy he was feeling with the lovely woman in his arms.

* * *

The front door of Merlotte's swung open revealing a blindfolded Sookie Stackhouse Northman. "This better be good, Eric."

Laughing, Eric responded, "It will be, dearest. I promise."

Her husband's strong, steady hands on her shoulders added to her trust in his words. Bending close to her ear, he said, "Walk straight ahead, lover."

The pounding notes of Bob Seger singing "Old Time Rock & Roll" flooded her ears along with the shuffling of several pairs of feet in different parts of the bar. Cheating, she reached out with her telepathy. She sensed an unusual hodge-podge of brain types in Merlotte's tonight.

Most of all, she could feel Eric's eagerness and joy at the surprise he'd arranged for her. Shutting her gift down with her strongest barriers, she decided to let her husband have his surprise.

Eric's voice against her hair instructed, "Now turn left."

As she did so, she was engulfed by some very odd emotions coming from her brother whom she knew was moving across the room, away from the source of the now-fading music.

Gently, Eric removed the blindfold. "Open your eyes."

With a blink, Sookie's eyes cleared and she shrieked. Grinning foolishly, she looked at each of the ten faces surrounding her. "What're you-all doing here? It's not my birthday!"

Tara and Amelia sandwiched her in between them and squeezed. "It's your half-year birthday, girlfriend!" Tara announced proudly.

"Since when do we need a reason to spend time with an old friend," Alcide growled and leaned in to kiss Sookie on the cheek.

"We're just glad you're home and safe," a tearful Amelia blubbered.

Amelia's waterworks got Sookie's tear ducts going. Extracting herself from her two BFF's tight hold, she turned to Eric. "Thank you, my husband."

Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her tenderly on the forehead. "You're very welcome, my wife."

In a whirlwind of affection, she accepted kisses from JB, Jason, Bubba, Sam and Beth. Maintaining his vampire aloofness, Rasul gave her a very flirtatious yet chaste wink. Blowing him a kiss, she accepted his show of affection then turned toward the door as she felt a new human mind enter the bar.

The new human was a stranger. Tall, lanky and muscular, he smiled at her easily as his strikingly beautiful companion came toward her.

Laughing, Claude Crane kissed her cheek enthusiastically. "Surprise, cousin!"

Sookie's adrenalin rushed to her mouth and she sputtered, "Claude! What are you doing here?"

"After missing your wedding, I couldn't turn down this invitation," he teased.

"Who was crazy enough to invite you?"

"Me," Eric answered coolly.

Gaping at her husband, she got her voice under control and grabbed her fairy cousin's arm. "You can't stay here! There are three…no four vampires in the bar!" she whispered loudly.

Laughing harder, Claude explained, "Do you remember what I told you that night at the club about grandfather's company working on something to mask our scent. Well, they finally perfected it."

Her mouth hanging open, she stared at him.

Claude turned to Eric. "Your wife doesn't believe me, sheriff."

Eric simply smirked.

With a flourish, Claude held his hand under Eric's nose. "Do I smell good enough to eat, vampire?"

Eric's purposeful deep intake of breath allowed him to sniff the fairy's skin slowly and carefully. Wrinkling his nose in distaste, he answered, "Sorry, no."

Ignoring Bubba's questioning look, Sookie stared directly at Rasul. The enigmatic vampire simply shook his head in the negative.

With three out of the four vamps in Merlotte's not reacting to Claude's fairy presence, the last test was the fourth vampire across the room she'd hoped to ignore. To Bill Compton's credit, he kept his eyes on the young woman across the table from him. Sookie waited the standard seconds it would normally have taken for a vamp to show signs of moving toward her cousin. When nothing happened, she relaxed, a little anyway.

Breaking the silence, Claude proudly introduced the ruggedly handsome man beside him, "Sookie, this is my special friend, Derek James Addison."

Almost recovered from the fairy scent shock, she took note of the special tone of voice her cousin had used to introduce his latest interest. Holding out her hand, she said, "Nice to meet ya, Derek."

Taking her hand in his firmly, he smiled. "Everyone calls me DJ."

"DJ, this is my husband, Eric Northman."

DJ nodded to Eric. "You have an interesting clientele at your bar in Shreveport, Mr. Northman."

"It's Eric." Snickering, he added, "Interesting covers a multitude of sins at Fangtasia."

DJ laughed roughly. "I'm new to this area, so I checked out all the clubs and bars to get a feel for the local social life. At Hooligans, I found something more my style. Your cousin is a very talented dancer, Sookie."

"It runs in the family," Eric informed him, a deeply amused smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

Suppressing a giggle, Beth announced, "There's a ton of food in the kitchen. You wanna eat, you gotta help girls and guys."

"Drink orders first," Sam said as the group started to move toward the kitchen.

At the bar, Eric watched Sam fill the drink orders from memory and place them on a large serving tray.

"I don't like owing favors whether to another vamp, a human, a Were, or a shifter. I owe you for this, Sam."

"No, you don't. I'd do almost anything to make Sookie happy. I'm just glad both of you are still with us."

"Thank you, for everything. There will come a day when I'll find a way to repay you."

Sam laughed. "I hope you still feel that way when you see the bill for all the food and drinks this bunch will be costing you. A generous gratuity toward our wedding fund would be appreciated."

The two men laughed heartily and easily, their past clashes long since put to rest, thanks to Sookie.

As Sam picked up the heavy tray, Eric felt a too familiar vamp presence come up behind him. He turned to see a grim-faced Bill Compton.

"May I have a few minutes of your time, sheriff?"

Eric loathed that Compton addressed him only by his formal title now. It reeked of flagrant disrespect. As he followed the younger vampire outside, he suppressed his personal animosity. Taking on the strict master-to-underling persona he had perfected, he faced his old rival for Sookie's affections.

Without preamble, Bill got to the point of their first face-to-face meeting since their confrontation just before the wedding. "I'm requesting your permission to leave Bon Tempts for a brief business trip."

Eric's long experience with the crafty word games in their vampire universe put him on alert. Using the authority of his superior position, he asked smoothly, "Where and for how long?"

"Boston, for ten days."

The minimal information almost made Eric laugh. If he'd cared, he would have asked the why question. Alicia Campbell, the sheriff of Area One in Massachusetts, was an old Irish vampire friend of Alec's. All Eric had to do was make a phone call to assure full surveillance of Bill's movements in Boston.

"When do you leave?"

"Sunday morning."

Compressing his lips, Eric gave his final order, "Report in as soon as you're back in Bon Temps."

The frigid façade of vampire civility would have held if Bill Compton hadn't laughed. "You have far more enemies than you thought you had, sheriff."

With a proud laugh of his own, Eric responded, "Then I'm obviously doing my job properly."

Bill's second laugh had a cruel edge to it. "All the human's forensic science is useless in our world. It can't solve a carefully planned vampire murder. There is no evidence since we simply disintegrate."

Eric did not like the tone of the conversation, but he needed to see where it was heading. "What is your point?"

Compton's voice turned icy and sharp. "Even Rasul isn't enough to protect your back from all the contracts I suspect are out there with your name on them. It would be best if you had him protecting your beloved wife instead. A fragile human like Sookie could easily succumb to any violence directed at you."

Eric took a lengthy step forward. Towering over the smaller vampire, he glowered, "Is that a threat?"

"Just a valid observation." Bowing his head in a minimal show of respect, Bill added, "Thank you for allowing me to conduct my business, sheriff."

If it were possible for a vampire to kill with a look, Bill Compton would have been toast in that moment. Reigning in his escalated hatred of the pathetic excuse for a vampire in front of him, Eric turned on his heel and went back into the bar.

In his rage and, yes, his fear, Eric chose the one loving comfort in his vampire existence. At the table, he held out his hand to Sookie. "Dance with me."

The strength he felt as her hand closed around his was amazing. They couldn't lie or keep things from each other emotionally any longer. Through their respect and love, forged by their blood bond, they ignored, accepted or compromised. Sookie's warm hand gave him what he needed to soothe his painful mélange of emotions, lover to beloved.

At the jukebox, he punched the buttons for the song he wanted. The first notes of the Elvis Presley rendition of "Bridge Over Troubled Water" began. Sookie wrapped her arms tightly around him when they reached the center of the dance floor. Blending his big body into her open embrace, they moved as if they were one entity.

Chairs scraped and couples paired off as Bubba's still strong voice overpowered the recorded version of the poignant ballad. Claude and DJ joined the formally declared twosomes, their shadow dance position close and naturally affectionate.

Standing in the doorway of Merlotte's, Bill Compton swept his eyes across the group of dancers, lingering on Sookie and Eric. The memories of his brief time with her had become more excruciating knowing how completely she now belonged to Eric. His final look settled on Jason and Stephanie, their intimate eye contact belying the respectable body positions they held. In a blind rage that had no real outlet, he exited the bar slamming the sturdy door behind him.

The powerful notes of the final chorus faded then were quickly picked up by Bubba's impassioned a cappella repeat of the verses and chorus. The pairs of lovers danced on.

* * *

In an obviously inebriated voice yet maintaining the cool self-confidence of the Were pack leader he had become, Alcide continued melodramatically, "After Sookie dumped me for her big, blond vampire, I was devastated."

With a light laugh, Sam said, "You have a death wish Were?"

Gruffly, the green-eyed younger man answered, "This is my story, shifter. I'll tell it my way." Taking a long, deep breath, Alcide continued, "Burying myself in work, I took on a big surveying project for Copley Carmichael. While I was in New Orleans, I called on Amelia. One thing led to another as we comforted each other over all the bad stuff that had happened to her and to me. By the time I went home to Shreveport, I knew I'd found the right one." His big hand completely covered Amelia's. "Even though she's a witch by profession, I'm in love with the real woman, not a spell this time."

There was silence around the tables until Stephanie said with a sigh, "That's a beautifully romantic story, Alcide. When are you two getting married?"

"In June, _after_ the full moon," Amelia answered emphatically.

Laughter rippled around the tables. This time Stephanie turned to Beth and Sam. "Have you set a date?"

"February, after the full moon," Sam said.

Including Jason's lovely new girl as she looked at her female friends, Beth suggested, "We girls should get together real soon for a night out. No men allowed."

Into the chatter of female voices, Eric's deep, clear voice was impossible to ignore, "When you set up those next two bachelorette parties, Claude, you should bring in a guest performer."

There was a sudden dead silence until Sookie burst into hysterical laughter. Beth, Amelia and Tara's squeals of mirth joined hers and raised the decibel level way beyond normal. All four women avoided making eye contact with Eric.

The three vampires were silent. Rasul wondered why Eric's stoic expression was just barely holding off a mischievous grin.

Noticing that Claude was suppressing an urge to join the women's laughter, DJ asked quietly, "What's so funny?"

Leaning close to his lover's ear, Claude answered, "I'll explain later."

Stephanie looked at Jason questioningly. All he could do was shrug.

Alcide and Sam were jointly not amused. "What's the joke, ladies?" they asked in unison.

Hoping to break the dangerously loaded conversation, Beth asked, "How about another round of drinks?"

The laughter devolved into giggles then snickers and finally silent grins as one after another reveler checked his or her watch.

Eric held up his left wrist toward Sookie, displaying the Rolex Pam had given him last year. "It's pretty close to dawn. I need to get my three vamps headed home."

At Tara's wide yawn, JB put his arm around his wife and said, "Babies are up real early so we'd better get goin' too."

With fourteen people to help, it didn't take long to clear the remains of the party. Outside, shouted happy good nights were exchanged as the couples divided up and went to their respective vehicles.

Waving good night, Sam and Beth walked across the parking lot to their trailer arm-in-arm.

On the passenger side of his Dodge Ram pickup, Alcide gave his keys to Amelia and slid into the passenger seat, his head meeting the back of the seat in seconds.

JB helped a sleepy-eyed Tara into their minivan then got into the driver's seat.

Scuffling playfully, DJ pinned Claude up against the door of his bright metallic-blue van, then leaned in for a deep kiss while tugging at the fairy's long, black hair.

Standing beside his antique gold Crown Victoria watching each couple, Rasul turned to Bubba who was whistling softly beside him. "I need to find a girlfriend."

Bubba blinked then started to amble away. "I'm goin' huntin'. See ya later."

With one last look at his master and his loving mate, Rasul started his car. Passing Jason and the breathtakingly beautiful lady he was obviously smitten with, he waved as he pulled out onto the two lane parish road.

* * *

Jason didn't want to speak. If he did, it would be time for this enchanted evening to end.

"I had a great time tonight, Jason. Thanks so much for making me a part of your wonderful group of friends."

"They all liked you too. I could tell." Looking down at his boots then up at Stephanie, he asked, "Would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow night? I mean tonight, Saturday?" Rushing on nervously, he said, "We could go into Shreveport to a really nice restaurant. Do you like Italian? How about seafood? We have great shrimp from the Gulf."

Putting her hand on Jason's shoulder, Stephanie smiled. "Slow down, Jason Stackhouse! Yes, I'll have dinner with you tonight."

With her positive words, Jason was able to breathe again and he smiled back at her.

"But first, there's something I need to tell you."

All Jason's excitement and happiness froze in his stomach. Stephanie's sweet smile had taken on a serious edge. He didn't do serious well so whatever she had to tell him couldn't be good.

His Stackhouse emotions went from fear to despair in an eye blink as he saw his fresh hopes and dreams disintegrating even before they'd had a chance to become real. He was on the verge of crashing when he felt Stephanie's hand cup his cheek. Her skin was so warm and soothing, calming his sadness. With a perceptible tingle racing along his skin from her touch, the hope began to grow again.

"Coming from New England, I do a mean hot cocoa from scratch. I'll make a big pot for us to talk over at my house?"

Jason took her hand in his and squeezed. "I love hot cocoa," he grinned.

* * *

Sookie smiled giddily as she watched her brother and the beautiful Stephanie get in his truck and speed out of the parking lot. Something special had happened between them tonight. She wished with all her heart that it would finally bring Jason some happiness.

Turning to Eric, she said, "You're a troublemaker, Eric Northman."

"But it's so much fun, dearest," and he kissed her passionately.

Holding him tightly against her, feeling the still swirling emotions he'd been broadcasting since he'd come back into Merlotte's, she whispered, "What did Bill Compton say?"

He pulled back from their very comfortable embrace so he could look into her eyes. "He confirmed what I've suspected for a while now. There are several of my own kind who want to end my existence."

"What else?"

"The danger to you of injury or death is much greater than it was before. That they will hurt or kill you in trying to get to me is a surety now."

She didn't know why her body began shaking. It could have been a delayed reaction, either his, hers or combined, from that whole almost-dead part that had happened only days before. Eric's revelation that they both had fresh threats to fear was more than enough to bring on additional anxiety for their survival.

Taking hold of the collar of her cranberry jacket, he bunched it tighter around her neck. "You are cold, my lover. We will talk on the way home."

The trembling continued as Eric helped her into the Corvette. Usually he played one of her favorite CDs from the case he kept in the car for her. Tonight he sensed her need for silence, and for serious conversation.

Getting her chattering teeth under control, Sookie said, "You never asked what happened when I interrogated Audrey?"

Keeping his eyes on the dark road, Eric let his voice slip fully into the soft and intimate tone he always used with her in private. "I knew you would tell me when you were ready."

The warmth blasting from the car's heater finally stopped her trembling. In a steady voice, she confessed, "I wanted to kill her, in front of Bobby, and in front of God. I would have too – if she'd been the one directly responsible for the attempt on your life."

Before she could finish sorting out her thoughts, Eric's heavy foot had brought them the short distance from Merlotte's to Hummingbird Lane and their driveway.

Rasul's car was parked rakishly on the gravel. Looking up, she saw a light on in the upstairs bedroom. Eric's bodyguard had graciously taken the newly light-sealed room up there. Sookie was sure his very romantic and sensual vampire soul had done so to give the newlyweds the entire ground floor for privacy.

Desperate to hold back her threatening tears of rage and frustration, the words came tumbling out in their place. Looking at her husband, she said coldly, "If you had died on that mountain, I would have hunted down everyone responsible and killed each in the most expedient vampire way possible."

Though the interior of the car was dark, Eric kept his expression even and open. "You are brave, strong and calculating when you need to be. I've always been very proud of you for your abilities and resilience." He paused almost imperceptibly then continued, "Even with help, my love, you would have died before the last one was found."

"I would have asked Pam to turn me first. Once I had my vengeance, I would have made sure my life without you ended."

The bucket seats were a hindrance, but Eric encircled her shoulders and pulled her as close to him as was possible in the small sports car. "That isn't what I want for you, Sookie. If my final death comes to pass, I want you to go on with our child. That is why I struggled to keep you alive that horrible night and not turn you."

Sookie couldn't hide the shock in her voice. "You believe you'll meet your final death soon?"

"I don't know how soon. The pragmatist in me sees the number arrayed against me which has never been so vast or so unknown."

"I wish you had turned me. Giving up our chance for a child would have hurt, but the other alternative is too depressing to think about. If I were vampire like you, we could fight these monsters side by side as equals and defeat them. Then we would be together for eternity."

"Your romantic soul is forgetting one thing. If we failed, there is no guarantee, from your God or from the supernatural unknown that rules over my race, that we would be together in an afterlife."

Her lips compressed in a hard line of determination. "We'll get through this, Eric! I know because I may have a magic ace up my sleeve."

Eric's quizzical expression changed to a trusting smile as his deeply ingrained self-confidence and his unquestioning belief in her filled his being through their blood bond. "We will survive together or we'll die together, beloved. That is a sure thing."

* * *

With dawn far too close, they settled their naked bodies under the thick covers of their bed and fell asleep in each other's arms.


	5. Chapter 5

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 5

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice – The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: With groveling apologies for the lateness of this chapter to all of you who've been waiting. My only excuse is that I just discovered J. R. Ward's "The Black Dagger Brotherhood" series, and became so obsessed, I had to read all eight very long novels one right after the other. My muse, who was sitting right on my shoulder as each exciting page whizzed by, took that brief vacation with me, and wouldn't let me do _any_ Sookie and Eric. It wasn't all my fault!

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 5

I carefully placed the second fresh log on the heavily glowing bed of embers then replaced the screen. Sinking onto the hearthrug, I smiled. The snap, crackle and pop as seasoned wood began to be consumed by the flames was one of the most comforting things about being here in the Bon Temps house.

Oh, don't get me wrong. I absolutely adore the home Eric and I share in Shreveport. It was a beautiful, sprawling, airy ranch overflowing with my beloved's impeccable taste and the memorabilia of his thousand years of immortality that he had freely made mine as well. But this place, my ancestral home, was special in a way that his vampire home could never be.

Eric had fought to stay awake after we'd gotten home from the party. I had sensed he wanted to talk more about something, but he just couldn't resist his vampire need to sleep once dawn began claiming the night. I had followed him into sleep from my own human need for rest.

The daydreaming had started when I woke up in the deep quiet of this winter morning. I'd brewed a big pot of strong coffee, nursing first one mug then a second. I'd kind of skipped over that first year and a half when our relationship, such as it was, had been pretty rocky. What an impossible pairing we'd made back then: an arrogant, gorgeous millennia-old vampire and a tough, stubborn country girl with a bunch of unknown fairy genes in my blood.

I let myself drift further into some of my favorite daydreams as I stared into the firelight. The happy time we'd spent with our closest friends last night had allowed me to put aside the threat hanging over my husband's existence, and focus on the exquisite happiness of my life for the first time in this new year. There was no order to the good times. I simply needed to surround myself with those memories.

I'd concentrated on the real beginning, those precious nights Eric and I had talked and laughed and made love when he had no idea who he was and I fell truly, deeply and madly in love with an amnesiac vampire. I'd felt wrapped in a world of pure joy during that time despite the danger that was just around the corner that January. All the lovin' we'd shared in this house still knocked my socks off.

My latest Word of the Day was synthesis, a perfect description of my man. The two Eric's, so different, were actually two sides of the same being. After the horror of my torture and the tragedies of the Fae War, I'd realized he was everything I wanted and needed. Our wedding had been like a fairy tale come true. Of course, we were still wading in trouble, but that just seemed to come with being knee deep in our supernatural world. Having been only just a human before, I knew my kind had their own versions of trouble, in spades.

The red sparks coming from the fire reminded me of the gift my great-grandfather Niall had given us. I regularly took the small metal cylinder out of the elegantly carved rosewood box inlaid with mother of pearl that Eric had given me to keep it in. I'd hold it close to my breasts imagining what it would be like to have an infant suckling there. There was a miracle waiting in that piece of human technology suffused with fairy magic. Eric and I had agreed to wait to make the one and only baby we would have together. After what he said in the car after the party, that if he met his final death he wanted me to go on with our child, I was wondering if waiting might be a mistake.

I heard uneven footsteps above my head then coming down the stairs from the second floor that brought me back to the here and now. Standing, I waited at the bottom of the staircase for DJ, my cousin Claude's significant other, to give his explanation of my on-again off-again electrical problem.

When he got to the bottom he grinned and asked, "Got anymore of that coffee I've been smelling?"

I motioned for him to follow me into the kitchen. As I got down one of my new super-sized butterfly mugs, I noticed the oddly off balance way he sat down at the table.

"I hope I didn't make too much noise up there. I'd hate to wake up your husband and houseguest."

Laughing loudly, I said, "You don't know much about vampires, do you? Once they're in their day sleep, they're dead to the world."

That rough, hearty laugh from last night came out again. "No, I don't. Vamps don't work in the oil fields or out on the ocean rigs."

"You're a driller?"

"Since I left home at seventeen," he answered, adding two heaping spoonfuls of sugar to his black coffee.

"Where was "home"?"

"Colorado. A tiny town just below the Rockies."

"How'd you wind up in Monroe?"

With an easy smile, he answered, "I needed to change careers after this," and he lifted the loose khaki of his left pant leg.

Attached below his knee was one of those prosthetic limbs I remembered seeing in the "Forest Gump" movie. Flustered, I said, "Gee, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be. It's been two years and my life is pretty good. Thanks to what I learned over those twenty years with the oil company, I have my electrician's license, and started my own business with the insurance money from the accident. I still swim, ski and dance."

"And you found Claude."

"Yup." Running his hand across his stubble-covered chin, he added, "I'm not crazy about this, but your cousin likes it, so…"

"You're a good guy, DJ Addison. So, any idea why the circuit breakers keep kicking off?"

DJ's expression became all business. "Who installed the security system?"

"It was part of a big job Carmichael Construction did for us. One of their subcontractors. Why?"

"I've seen shoddy work before, but this was intentional. They rigged the whole system so it appears to be operating when it's set. Actually, your house is wide open to any intruders."

Fear choked me as I thought of Eric, helpless and exposed during the day. All an enemy would have to do was wait for me to go out. And we knew there were more than just vamps keeping tabs on us.

Pulling myself together, I asked, "Can you fix it?"

"Sure. I'll need to get some parts from a builder's warehouse in Shreveport that carries this equipment."

"Do it!" I said grimly.

DJ nodded and started out the back door to his business van.

"Do you and Claude have plans for tonight?"

"Just dinner out and a movie. Neither of us is much good in the kitchen."

"How about I cook? Pot roast, gravy and mashed potatoes, biscuits, salad, and chocolate cream pie for dessert."

"I'll call Claude," DJ grinned and closed the door behind him.

As I started putting together what I needed for the pot roast from the refrigerator, I admitted my invitation had two purposes. I wanted Eric to get all the details directly from DJ about the obvious sabotage. I also decided it was time to ask my fairy cousin those questions that had been bugging me about the odd power I seemed to be developing.

* * *

Dinner was long over with only a thin, lone slice of my chocolate cream pie left in the Pyrex plate. Considering that two of the males seated around the kitchen table were vampires who didn't eat human food, it made Claude and DJ look like gluttons. Very good looking gluttons though.

Claude and I had gone into listener mode as Eric, DJ and Rasul discussed the security issue here at the house then expanded the conversation to include Shreveport, our home there and Fangtasia.

Being the natural leader he was, Eric took full charge of the discussion, asking questions, making comments and listening closely to both DJ and Rasul, ultimately making the decision that he wanted DJ to do the same inspection and review of our house and Fangtasia as had been done for our home here in Bon Temps.

Stretching, Eric stood up and looked from DJ to Rasul, "Are we ready to rock and roll, gentlemen?"

I suppressed the laugh I felt bubbling up from my belly and threatening to pop out of my mouth. Whenever my Viking used any contemporary slang, it just tickled me. Even if it was dated, he was always in precise context.

With an engaging smile, Rasul stood up, put his hand over his silent heart and bowed from the waist. "As always, it has been a pleasure, lovely lady."

I waited for one of his mischievous winks, but in the mixed company he knew his place had to be properly kept. He exited by the front door. I heard a car door open and the powerful V8 engine of his Crown Victoria turn over.

DJ didn't hesitate to engulf me in a tight hug, with a warm kiss to my cheek. "Thanks so much for the great meal and the wonderful company. I'll stop by during the week to make sure the alarm is working properly."

Before heading out the front of the house where his Addison Electric van was parked, he lovingly clamped his hands on Claude's shoulders. Leaning close, he whispered something in my cousin's ear that made him laugh.

That left my magnificent vampire waiting patiently. When he saw my shameful look of utter adoration that I'm unable to control on a regular basis, he smiled. "I won't be late," and he kissed me softly on the lips.

It was only a simple touch of Eric's cool vampire skin on my body, but it set off a raging heat of carnal thoughts that startled him. "What?"

With a coy half-smile, I said, "Later."

His big hand caressed the left side of my neck that was my third favorite place for him to feed from then he was out the front door. I waited to hear the Corvette engine start up. Instead the opening and closing of a door told me Eric was riding shotgun to Rasul's driving. The two vehicles made noisy exits onto Hummingbird Lane.

Sighing, I turned back to the table that needed to be cleared. I picked up the pie plate and headed for the lined trashcan by the back door.

"Don't throw that away, cuz!" Claude exclaimed. "I want to bring it home for DJ."

Laughing, I said, "Eric and I are heading back to Shreveport tomorrow. I'll just wrap all these leftovers up for the two of you. How's that?"

"You've saved us from another badly cooked homemade dinner," and he came around the table and planted a very emphatic kiss on my lips. Sitting back down, he watched me move around the kitchen.

I really do love those touchy-feely fairies! Taking an assortment of Gladware containers out of my stash in the pantry, I added, "I'm really happy DJ bought Tray's property. He's one more friend Eric and I can spend time with when we're here in Bon Temps. And I'll get to see more of you, cousin dear."

"As long as I wear my anti-vampire cologne," he laughed. Very shyly, he said, "Monroe is where my businesses are, but Bon Temps is going to be my home now that I'm moving in with DJ. Claudine called this place a convergence of worlds for all of us."

I nodded tearfully at my cousin's sweet memory of his sister then wrapped the last piece of pie securely in the final food storage container and put them in the refrigerator. I sat back down at the table next to Claude. I wasn't quite sure where to start about the strange power I'd been manifesting without giving a long explanation going all the way back to last November. I knew this "thing" was more than just smelling nice to vamps because of my fairy genes. I also knew it was an untapped spark of magic that I'd become too afraid to examine by myself. Claude solved my problem by talking first.

"I don't know how to say this without scaring you so I'll just begin. There's something you need to know about Jason's new lady, Stephanie Blair."

Abject terror going back to last January twisted in my chest. "Oh, my God! Don't tell me she's an evil fae creature seeking revenge for what happened a year ago?"

Claude cleared his throat embarrassed. "I knew I was going to mess this up. No, she's not an evil anything. Stephanie is a fairy, and she's far from evil."

"She's a fairy like you?"

"Just three-quarters," he corrected.

"How much of a difference is there between full and three-quarters?" I asked with a little smirk at Claude's status clarification.

"Not too much. She probably has pointed ears. That gene is pretty strong when you have one full parent and the other a half."

"Did you know her before?"

"I knew _of_ her. The name Blair means "from the plain lands". They are an earth clan that has been allied to our Sky People for millennia. Her father was one of grandfather's commanders."

"Was?"

"He died that same night."

I knew what night he meant and what he didn't say, that it was the last night of the Fae War when his sole surviving sibling, Claudine, had died. Gently, I covered his tightly balled fists on the table with my hands.

Shaking himself out of the unusual emotional waves I felt coming from him, he said, "This place is like a magnet. It's easy to see she's here because of your brother."

"Should I warn Jason?"

"I don't think you need to. Stephanie is from an honorable, old family. She would never get involved with a human, especially one so closely related to Niall, without telling him who and what she is."

I couldn't help smiling realizing what it was I had sensed so clearly concerning my brother at Merlotte's. "I felt the magic around them last night. I hope she's the one. Jason hasn't had any luck with human or shifter women."

"Speaking of magic, you said there was something you needed to ask me about fairy magic?"

"Yeah. I've had some odd experiences with what I can only describe as power way beyond my ordinary old human abilities."

Leaning forward on his forearms, Claude asked, "Like what?"

"Niall had the scientists at Chem One Research create something that will enable Eric and me to have a child with both his genes and mine. That night last November after the prince's gift was delivered here, Eric was overcome by a supernatural enchantment that pulled him to Bon Temps like nothing before, and it came straight from me." I didn't go into the mind-blowing sex that had followed my man's arrival that night.

"Are you sure it wasn't just that blood bond you two have? Vampire blood can do some pretty crazy things to a human. Like fairy blood does to them."

"I'm sure. Actually, he'd come here to end our relationship. But that's a whole other story. Anyway, it was the first time I felt what I can only describe as fairy magic inside me."

"It happened again?" Claude asked surprised.

"Twice. New Year's Eve night when Eric lay dying in the snow, I felt a blast of it again, only then it was a desperate attempt to keep him alive. And it worked."

"That was a good thing. So why do I sense you're frightened?"

I was ashamed to give Claude details of the third incident. The long-time Christian in me still felt guilty as hell about what I'd done to Audrey. But I'd opened this can of worms, and had to finish it. "The day after we came home, I was questioning a Fangtasia employee who'd broken into Eric's office. Instead of the feeling inside me coming from love or fear, it reeked of hate. I hurt the woman, physically, mentally and emotionally, to get information from her mind. Worst of all, I didn't care that what I'd done was wrong."

Claude took a deep breath before he spoke. "You're afraid that this power inside you may become strong enough to kill."

"Yes."

"I believe what you're telling me, but it's impossible. If we fairies had some fantasy magic that made us capable of willing death, grandfather would have killed his enemies and there would have been no war. Yes, we have some powerful magic, but not to the point of commanding death. If we did, our enemies could have easily used it against _us_. All the supernatural races have some powers they can use to protect and defend themselves, but none are totally invincible."

"Just like humans. Otherwise we'd have destroyed ourselves long ago." I took a deep, shaky breath and looked into Claude's warm brown eyes. "I guess I was hoping I had some special fairy ability that would protect Eric," I said softly. My lower lip trembling, I held back my fearful tears. "But it's so real when it comes, as if I'm outside myself, not the Sookie Stackhouse I've known for twenty-eight years."

In an affectionate voice, Claude said, "You are a unique creature, my cousin. The mixture of human, fairy and vampire because of your special connection to Eric may have evolved into something new. I wish I could be of more help."

"If I'm some genetic anomaly in the evolutionary chain, I'll just have to deal with it. I've gotten very good at shielding myself because of the telepathy. I'm going to have to build some new barriers in my head so I can control this."

With a tender smile, Claude asked, "So, when are you and Eric planning on starting your family?"

I grinned back and began babbling about the happy future I was hoping and praying would commence very soon.

* * *

Bill Compton had found the perfect place to conceal himself in the woods behind Sookie's house. It was far enough away that not even a vampire would detect him. He knew because he'd tested it numerous times when Eric had been there over the last year. The great distance didn't hamper his acute vampire sight in the least.

He laughed silently and deeply. Circumventing his confinement was one of his greatest pleasures. His sheriff had commanded, expecting him to abide by the old honor system. There were no electronic monitoring devices for vampires. The thousand-year old sheriff was getting senile if he had expected him to obey.

Along with mainstreaming, existing only on TrueBlood had lost its charm. He had been out of Bon Temps on regular forays at night to feed. It had made him feel like a true vampire again. He was good at choosing prey, taking what he needed from them and making them forget. On the rare occasions when his hunger had gone too far, he had done well at hiding the bodies. Those were the times when the uncontrollable rage took over. The rage was because of her, the one he couldn't have any longer.

On this unusually warm winter night, his eyes devoured the beautiful woman sitting calmly on the top step of her back porch. He knew she was in deeply intense thought by the serious expression her face was set in.

His superior vision enveloped her body, remembering the feel of her skin and her limbs around and beneath him. Her melodic voice rang through his head the way she had moaned in the first ever pleasures he had given her. The smell and taste of her blood and her feminine bodily fluid twisted his memory into fresh, agonized longing. He dreamed of one last coupling with her. One last feeding that would end his undead torment.

Looking up, he heard the whoosh of a vampire landing only feet from the object of his desire.

* * *

After I had opened the back door, the deceptively warm night made my sun-hungry skin prickle with anticipation for spring. Then a sudden rush of cold air had cut across my back yard from Tall Pines Cemetery, bringing with it the seasonal reality. I was glad I'd put on the bright green fleece sweatsuit I'd bought at Tara's Togs that afternoon.

Claude and I had spent some more quality time after the three guys went on their mission to Shreveport. The topics had stayed on the light and easy side. We'd already covered all the heavy stuff.

With a long hug and a tender kiss, he'd begged leave to head out. The house in Monroe had finally been sold. He'd come directly from there with the last of his belongings packed into his Impala. He wanted to get some unpacking done before DJ got home. The way he said the word home told me how truly happy he was for the first time since I'd met him. The self-conscious little smile he gave me hinted that there would be more than unpacking going on tonight. My cousin had definitely changed over the past year. Grief had made him far less selfish and self-absorbed. There was still a little of it there, but no one's perfect. Finding DJ, who obviously adored him, fairy warts and all, had swept away his old destructive streak of self-centeredness. My Bon Temps family was definitely expanding in a happy way.

There were parts of our conversation that kept repeating back at me after he left, and it all came around to that mysterious unnamed power I had developed. What I'd sensed the night before concerning Jason and Stephanie could have been just my telepathy. But that was too simple an explanation. My brother's thoughts had been wide open to me in a way I'd never read them before. When I recalled what I'd felt, I recognized that I'd been absorbing both their emotions.

What finally convinced me my new ability was for real was that I'd also been able to read Claude's strong grief as easily as I could read a human's mind. Along with my newly discovered "dark side", it scared the bejeezus out of me that fairy minds were no longer closed to me. I had some major barrier building to do, and quick.

Before I got myself too deep into those old questions of good and evil, hate and love, creation and destruction, I had sat my butt down on the top step to wait for Eric. The heady perfume I'd lavished on my body after my hot shower was so pervasive around me, it gave off a very different message than the casual outfit I was wearing. But they both added up to the same end, and I knew my always hot to trot husband would pick up on it without any coaxing.

I couldn't help hugging myself in a fresh wave of joy. What Eric had wanted to say just before the breaking dawn made him detour into his day sleep was a very special request about Niall's gift. He was no sooner awake at sunset today than he'd put his feelings into words. With no doubt or hesitation on my part, we agreed that we didn't want to wait any longer for our miracle.

The magic began stirring inside me, anxious and eager to take over my body and mind. Thanks to the ties of our blood bond, I could tell Eric was very close. This time I reached for the magic eagerly, letting it come into me with no doubts or fears. I could freely choose how I used this gift. Tonight, expressing my love for my man was where I wanted to go with it.

* * *

At times like these, I was pleased that my vampire gift was that of flight. My pinpoint landing at the foot of the back steps created a rush of hormones throughout my lover's body. Thanks to our blood bond, her welcoming emotional glow radiated her inner happiness at my return along with much more.

Sookie smiled and held out her hand. I took it and fitted myself closely beside her. She rested her head on my shoulder, her arms wrapping tightly around my bicep.

"Where's Rasul?"

"I gave him the night off so he could find some interesting female companionship at Fangtasia. He _is_ a normal male vampire with needs," I grinned.

Laughing softly, she rubbed her cheek against my T-shirt sleeve. "You are an excellent boss, Eric Northman."

Despite her calm exterior, I could feel my woman's body waiting expectantly. With another sigh, she said, "I wish I'd brought the box with me. We could have made our baby tonight."

"We shall plan that for our next visit here, my lover. I promise." I buried my face in her hair, taking in the intoxicating scent that drifted from her skin into my nostrils. "In the meantime, we really should do all the practicing we can." Those words manifested into an immediate physical reaction on my body.

With a deeper laugh, Sookie ran her mouth enticingly across mine. Before I could reach for her, she stood up and took a seductive stance on the ground. I felt her emotions opening fully, engulfing her body. She began swaying in the moonlight to music only she could hear. Her hands freely explored her female form through her clothing as if she were doing a striptease routine. All the while, she kept her eyes locked on my face. Her increasingly heated smile drew me further into her desire, allowing my rising passion to soar with her. Our bonded ties were merging with her supernatural magic in an amazing way.

As the zipper of her jacket made its way down her torso, a feeling I remembered so vividly from that November night surrounded me. This time it was focused and controlled intentionally by my lover. She was using her latent ability deliberately for our pleasure. Her unbound wantonness became compelling.

Flinging away the jacket, she cupped her ample breasts, begging me with her eyes to caress and suckle them as I always did in our lovemaking. My own physical reaction had become a painful throbbing against my too tight jeans as I stepped in front of her.

Greedily, my mouth and hands gave her what she wanted, the nipples hardening and swelling. A bite to the especially sensitive sweet spot on her right breast from by fully extended fangs brought a heavy groan of pleasure from my woman. The decadent mouthful of her blood that I swallowed went straight to my groin.

Disengaging her body from my hunger, she became totally still, knowing what I wanted to do next. Pressing close to her, my hands slipped into the elastic waistband and slid the garment down her hips, her legs trembling from my caresses all the way to the ground. The sight of the glistening wetness dripping from her highly aroused body and covering her waiting thighs made me growl deep in my chest.

Whipping off my own clothes, I embraced her vibrating body. The full force of her magic coursed between us as our skin touched from chest to knees. We were surrounded so thickly by the supernatural, I felt as if we were outside of our own reality. There was no cold, either in the air or from my undead skin. My body was as warm as my human lover's had always been.

The heat intensified as we touched each other with increasing demands. My woman had total power over me, from our blood bond and her special magic. There was no escape, and I had no desire to end my captivity.

My genitals were so heavily engorged with my need for her I picked her up and impaled her on my erection. Her legs wrapped around me like bands of hot steel, her back arching so I was able to pound into her with each demanding tightening of her endless contractions.

The cries of ecstasy from our mutual collisions echoed through the silent woods, indistinguishable as vampire or human. This was true fairy enchantment from my lover to me. It grew in strength, bringing release after release to our melded bodies. With another tremendous climax, I collapsed backwards onto the winter short grass, my vampire body protecting her human flesh from the hard ground.

Time passed but our bodies refused to let go of each other. I lovingly ran my fingers through her passion-wet hair. Raising her head, she looked deeply into my eyes.

Her voice pleading, she whispered, "More."

My body responded to her entreaty. With one final thrust, a promise from me to my beloved that we would continue our lovemaking, I swept her up into my arms and carried her to our bedroom.

* * *

In the woods, Bill Compton quivered in desire and hatred. His fangs ran out, hot and itching to kill Eric Northman.


	6. Chapter 6

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 6

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice – The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 6

After turning off the flashing red warning light that had activated when Rasul crossed over from the sidewalk that wound along the cul du sac of my property to the long slate paved path leading up to my front door, I waited in the entryway. When he was in full view of the security camera closest to the house, I released the triple locks and eased open the door.

"Sorry to bother you so late, sheriff. I have some news you're not going to like."

I reset the locks and the alarm as my bodyguard walked into my Shreveport home. I'd seen him less than an hour ago when we'd closed Fangtasia for the night. Holding back on questions about his comment, I led him into my office. It was the best place in the house both for soundproofing so we wouldn't disturb my sleeping wife and for two exchanges of bad news, his and mine.

Rasul's use of my title and his out of the ordinary phrasing told me more than I wanted to hear at that moment. Unfortunately, bad news travels fast, as the humans say. Frowning, I leaned forward on my desk. "What has happened?"

Despite the three a. m. hour, Rasul's dark eyes were sharp and alert, with a fire in them that told me he was a very angry vampire. "There's been an attempt on Russell Edgington's life. He'd just gotten home from a visit to Bart Crowe in Indiana when he was attacked in front of his mansion."

"Someone was very stupid to go after him with all the entourage he still keeps there," I said in disgust.

Shaking his head slowly, Rasul explained grimly, "The mansion was a bloodbath of humans and piles of vampire ash."

Slamming my hand on the highly polished wood of my mahogany desk, I shouted, "Damn!"

"The perpetrators were waiting when he arrived. He survived only because he had two heavily armed bodyguards plus his vampire driver with him. The attackers were all humans, and met _their_ maker instead. But it was too late for everyone in the mansion."

"You'd think with all the assassinations going on, Russell would have had tighter security," I added through clenched fangs.

"De Castro thinks it was an inside job. That his household had been infiltrated by spies and saboteurs."

"Our king is the one who called you?"

He answered gruffly, "Yes. He's so furious he wants to go after Victor right now."

"You talked him out of it I presume?"

"With great difficulty. It won't last if there's another attack against a monarch. The sheriffs being picked off one by one can be tolerated. But not this."

"Yes, we are expendable," I mused as I pulled together my own news. Turning to Rasul, I said, "There can be no retaliation for this or any other attacks that may occur."

"Are you going to say that to Felipe de Castro?"

"I won't have to. I'm sure he's already been told."

"Explain please, master."

"I have been summoned to a meeting with Gaston Bellerie at his chateau in Southern France."

I didn't have to say anything further. Rasul's thick, dark eyebrows arched up, his lips compressing into a tight line. The name of the former Consul General of the European Consortium was enough explanation.

"When do you leave?"

"An Anubis Air charter flight has already been arranged for me on Wednesday morning. While I'm away, you will be in charge of Fangtasia. Bobby will handle any business that comes along with your authorization."

"How long will you be away?"

"As long as is necessary."

"Is the special assignment we discussed still a go?"

"Definitely. We need much more information about our homegrown troublemakers."

Rasul didn't ask about Sookie, and I didn't offer any orders regarding her. I would wait until tomorrow to make arrangements for my woman's protection.

* * *

During one of our driving tours after I moved to Shreveport, Eric had told me that every modern city he'd ever visited had its business district that hummed with activity during the workweek. Some were big and sprawling like New York and Los Angeles. Others were more contained like Shreveport.

On this overcast Monday morning, I pulled my Chevy Malibu into the parking garage of the two-story glass and steel complex that housed the Extreme (ly Elegant) Events branch office, showroom and catering hall. My quick visit last summer when I'd dropped off my resume hadn't made a big impression. I'd been too nervous filling out the job application as well as anxious about Eric's trip to Las Vegas to pay any real attention. I did remember that the beautifully landscaped grounds were only a few blocks over from the Herveaux and Son building.

It felt so strange to be out and about in daylight. My universe had become the night. Eric's night.

With a deep breath, I took out my compact and inspected my makeup one last time. Lipstick straight and shiny – check! Eye shadow and mascara tastefully applied – check! Hair neatly in place – check! Nail polish perfect – check!

Carefully sliding out of the driver's seat, I smoothed the new sand tweed pencil skirt I'd chosen for my first day as an executive liaison. The soft aqua silk blouse with its loosely draped material at the v neckline was very feminine but modestly professional. The warm brown open suede vest had been an afterthought when I'd looked in the dressing room mirror at the store. The real finishing touches were the dark brown Hermes leather belt, heels, shoulder bag and briefcase that completed my outfit. For good luck, I'd worn the opal earrings Eric had given me for our wedding.

My back straight and shoulders squared, I headed for the elevator to the second floor where the executive offices were situated. Having access to all the high fashion brands through my favorite boutique helped with my self-confidence. If they didn't have what I wanted in their store, they'd get it for me. The collection of famous labels in Eric's huge walk-in closet (along with all his neatly hung T-shirts and jeans) far outnumbered mine. I'm proud to say that the modest accumulation I'd built up so far in my equally large closet wasn't bad for a little country girl from Bon Temps.

As I stepped off the elevator on the executive suite floor, I scanned the quiet space. My heels sunk into the deep, plush wine carpet. I could hear phones ringing politely here and there along the hallways. I signed in and planted my deceptively calm self in one of the art deco-styled tubular steel single chairs with its soft leather seat. Maxfield Parrish prints were tastefully arranged around the room. A stark white modern sculpture of a woman's head was on a low black corner pillar. Oriental motif flower arrangements in black lacquer vases were on chrome and glass tables placed around the reception area.

I heard James Albert Carlisle, branch manager for E(E)E, as he strode down the carpeted hallway toward the reception area. It had nothing to do with the cell phone he had pressed tightly to his ear or how intimately he was talking to the person on the other end. Jim Carlisle was one of _the_ loudest broadcasters my telepathic brain had ever encountered. He had Amelia beat by several football fields. I knew exactly who he was talking to (his girlfriend), and what he was hoping the evening would turn into after they had dinner. As he clicked the cell shut and stopped in front of me, I was very glad I was an experienced married woman.

He held out his large, bony hand. "Sorry about that. I'm Jim Carlisle, Mrs. Northman. I've been looking forward to meeting you."

I took his offered hand, and smiled with all the polite sincerity I'd learned from my old-school Gran. "It's Sookie. I'm glad to be here." With a loud internal slam, I closed my barriers tightly against the borderline porn images that were still floating in my mind's eye from his persistent thoughts.

"I've had a breakfast spread set up in the conference room. It will make all the material we have to cover less tedious," he said crisply as if he wanted to get the preliminaries out of the way fast.

Leading me down the long main corridor then right to a side corridor that ended at a set of double wooden doors, I took stock of the forty-something executive in his very chic, double-breasted, black Armani suit, along with his light blue shirt with French cuffs and tri-color striped tie. The lothario persona I'd "seen" sure fit the outer look. The matching designer cologne almost clinched it until I realized it was hiding a noticeable scent of cigarette smoke. To each his own.

Opening the doors, he politely ushered me into the conference room. With the fluid grace of an animal that I'd seen only once before in a shifter, a tan, handsome man stood up from the far side of the long wooden table in front of the bank of windows.

"Sookie, this is Max Swaine. He's the Southern Regional Manager for Special Events."

I shook his extra warm hand, catching a clear picture of a majestic brown bear ambling across a snow-covered field. Smiling at the very personal introduction he'd allowed me to see in his mind, I said, "Nice to meet you, Max."

"My pleasure, Sookie."

The very vivid image he flashed at me through the handshake was of a Bengal tiger I had been intimately acquainted with in my past.

* * *

One hour and fifty-three minutes later, the very hyper Jim Carlisle ran his fingers through his thick, impeccably barbered salt and pepper hair with another of the quick, raking motions he'd repeated several times during the meeting, welcomed me to the E(E)E family (again), and turned me over to Max Swaine.

Looking at the daunting pile of company materials piled in front of me, I couldn't help shaking my head. Before I could attempt to ask Max the question that had been rattling at the edges of my thoughts, he spoke first.

"I apologize for the tiger image. I didn't mean to spook you like that. It's just that Quinn has told me so much about you. Now that we've met, I can't get over how _much_ of what he said is true."

It's rare for me to be at a loss for words at this point in my life, but I was.

Quickly, Max added, "Quinn is always the perfect gentleman and censors his conversation when he talks about a woman. I've known him for so many years, I was able to fill in the blanks when he talked about you."

Clearing my throat, I asked, "How is Quinn?"

"Better, now that Victor isn't around and de Castro has let him do the work he loves with complete freedom again."

"Does that mean his mother and Frannie aren't under threat anymore?" I asked hopefully.

"As much as they can be since he's still working for the vamps."

The faint touch of bitterness I heard in his voice told me Max's loyalty was with his partner rather than his job. "So you didn't mind switching territories?"

His ingrained bitterness showed again in the set of his mouth. "Not really a free choice. Our two partners, Frank Stanton in the Northeast and Willa Kelly in the Midwest, were too heavily established to switch. The E(E)E money may come from the vamps, but Special Events is our business. Quinn and I are the senior partners so it was our decision."

The topic had reached a tricky crossroad with me being so closely tied to the vamp side of the equation, so I changed the subject. "I'm surprised the powers that be here want me out in the field so soon." Ruffling the folders in front of me, I continued, "The situation in Denver must be critical if they want me on a plane day after tomorrow."

Pointing at the pile, he explained, "Those resumes need to be your first priority. Quinn's been running the office since the manager was arrested, but it's effecting our SE business heavily."

"Arrested for what?"

"Embezzlement. He's human so it's being handled their way." His inflection was so neutral it was obvious he didn't care about the legalities.

I snickered, remembering how a certain vampire I know had reacted to a theft from his club.

A noticeable shift into a supernatural aura changed the whole atmosphere in the room.

"There are some things we need to talk about away from this mausoleum, Sookie," he said very seriously.

"How about the Applebee's down the road?" I suggested. Picking up a pile of folders, I stood.

Max came around the table, took the files out of my arms along with what was still on the table. He was as tall as Quinn so I had to look up. The only things I was left holding were my bag and briefcase.

Opening the double doors, he motioned for me to go first. "I'll show you to your office."

* * *

The restaurant was deserted of customers. Only the staff was moving around, preparing for the lunch crowd rush. I chose the familiar back booth for its privacy. Max ordered a small pot of coffee so there would be no hovering by any of the serving staff. The only difference between now and my last visit with Alcide was that my new shifter friend sat opposite me. Our conversation back at the E(E)E office had told me he was a strong eye contact person.

On the drive over in his SUV, Max had been fairly subdued, limiting his conversation to chitchat about the E(E)E company structure. He knew exactly where Applebee's was since he was very familiar with Shreveport. His limited communication gave me a chance to scope him out. Not mentally because he'd very carefully closed his werebear mind to me. And he was definitely a bear in his shifter form, Kodiak, not teddy. His human physical appearance had to do until he verbally let me into his thoughts.

As I said before, Max was as tall as Quinn. But that was the only similarity. Where Quinn was massive and husky, Max's physique was lean and wiry, the muscles deceptively strong. Even under the wintry-design v-neck pullover in its stark grey, white and black pattern and the deep red turtleneck, I could sense the movement and power. His eyes were a soft brown, so pale I couldn't give the color a name. What set the color off was the rich copper of his long hair. It was tightly tied back with a leather thong, the heavy waves rippling down the thick layers that covered his skull. The plain cowboy boots and jeans he wore hinted at his tie to the western part of the country. Max Swaine was another beautiful shifter.

After pouring coffee for each of us, he settled back on the bench and looked me straight in the eye. "We heard about the attempt on your husband's life. We know he's not the first sheriff to be targeted, but he's the most prominent."

That "we" pronoun started all kinds of bells and whistles screaming in my head. Just how many individuals and groups were keeping tabs on Eric?

Despite the positive vibes I'd been getting from Max so far, I really didn't know him all that well. Taking a page from the Northman book of caution, I asked, "Define prominent?"

Max laughed with a deep growl. "Quinn was right. You do belong in the vampire world." He paused to let that sink in then continued, "Eric Northman is the most powerful vampire in the State of Louisiana."

It was my turn to laugh. "Victor Madden would kill you for even suggesting that."

"Nevertheless, it's the truth. Due to his age and his past history, your husband is also highly placed in vampire politics at an international level."

I was beginning to feel out of my depth that this shifter knew more about my man than I did. Eric had told me a great deal about his personal past, but he'd been very secretive about anything to do with the political structure of his race outside the United States. I knew it was for my own safety, so I'd never pressed him about it. Obviously, it was time to change that.

"There's a war coming, Sookie. When we two-natured went public, a chain of events started that's become more than survival against the human hate groups. What happened in Jackson during the night shows how far the rival vamps will go to use the humans as a smokescreen."

His words made my blood run cold. "What are you talking about?"

As Max detailed all the events of the attack on Russell Edgington and his people, the fear I'd felt on that Vancouver mountain came back with a fury that almost crippled me. As soon as I got home, Eric was going to be under my verbal gun about what was really going on.

"I'm sorry for dumping all this on you so fast. We shifters are between a rock and a hard place right now. Some, like Alcide Herveaux and his pack, have chosen to throw in with the mainstream vamps. Most groups across the country are either ignorant of the danger or afraid to face what's coming."

Pulling in my fear, I gave Max my resigned conclusion, "Looks like Louisiana is the focal point for this conflict and Eric is right in the middle of it."

Max simply nodded.

Without summoning it, my supernatural power took over, demanding answers and brooking no resistance. "Where do you and Quinn stand?"

"As always, I'm with Quinn."

Something in his voice made me back off a little. "You and he are very close." I left out the "why" part of the question.

"I would have died in the pits if he hadn't bought my freedom. Losing an eye was a small price to pay for his rescuing me."

Focusing on Max's face, I realized why his stare was so compelling. He had a glass left eye that never moved.

In his soft bass, he continued answering my question, "Quinn still loves you. He _has_ accepted your marriage because he knows you're happy. He also sees the dangers that exist and will fight to the death to protect you."

I knew I should be flattered and honored at Quinn's continuing devotion to me. Instead I could only feel the bittersweet irony. Every one of the males I'd taken as a lover had become so tied to me, they couldn't let go. Not Bill. Not Quinn. Only Eric had been the winner in the Sookie Stackhouse sweeptstakes. Luckily, Sam and Alcide had been saved from the curse so they could find real love elsewhere.

With great effort, I kept the waterworks locked down. "Thank you for telling me all this. If you talk to Quinn before I go to Denver, tell him I'm looking forward to repairing our friendship." I knew Max would convey my message, and in the best light possible.

* * *

Just after six o'clock, I heard the security alarm beep softly then shut off as Sookie activated her entry remote from the driveway. The garage door slid up allowing her to drive in then closed again, resetting the alarm system in that zone of the house.

Meeting her at the connecting door, I took her heavy briefcase that had been almost empty when she'd left for her first day of work this morning. In her other hand was a brand new laptop case that she held onto as we moved into the kitchen.

"I could use a smooch here, vampire," she smiled, pursing her lips expectantly.

"Tough day at the office, honey?" I teased sympathetically. Leaning down, I planted an enthusiastic welcome home kiss on her luscious mouth.

Grinning, she sighed. "Thank you, " and slipped out of her high heels.

Taking the laptop from her, I put it and her heavy briefcase on the table in the breakfast nook. "Why don't you go shower and get comfortable while I put dinner on the table."

"Dinner?"

"Courtesy of Culinary Delights. I'm a vampire of many talents, my dear, but cooking isn't one of them."

Standing on tiptoe, she kissed me, picked up her heels and headed toward the hallway. "As long as I don't have to cook," she said over her shoulder.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, my working girl wife was freshly scrubbed and comfortably attired in the elegant amethyst tea dress I'd had made for her. The sheer fabric of finely pleated material was closely fitted from her shoulders, down her hips to her feet. It left little to the imagination on her curvaceous body. With an even more passionate kiss, I led her into the softly lit dining room.

Sookie gave an excited gasp, "Oh, Eric. It's so beautiful." Her satin-slippered feet glided to the table. Delicately, she touched a piece from each of the formal dinnerware patterns she'd selected at my insistence before our wedding: the vivid rose, yellow-gold and pink flowers on the Royal Doulton Old Country Roses dinner plate, the platinum band on a Waterford Marquis crystal water glass and the handle of a Towle 1690 Engraved gold knife at her place setting.

"Irene did most of the setup. She says you have perfect taste, my love." My beautiful wife looked up at me with those adoring eyes that always made me shiver. "The flowers and candles are my doing," I boasted proudly.

After placing the gold serving tray I'd carried in from the kitchen on the mauve damask tablecloth, I held out the captain's chair at the head of the table. "Madam, may I serve you now?" and I bowed from the waist.

Instead of sitting, my lover looked at me with her expressive blue eyes and wrapped her arms around my waist. Through her tight hold, I could feel a flood of emotions she wanted to express. The one she finally chose took me by surprise.

"Eric, I know about Jackson," and she squeezed me tighter.

Since the call from my former mentor and Rasul's disturbing news, I had known I would need to give my beloved wife more than a superficial reason for my trip to Europe. The level of concern she was projecting at me through our bond demanded _much_ more. I wrapped my long arms around her and whispered, "I made you a promise on our wedding night, my lover. It is now time for me to be clear, thorough and belatedly honest about my political past and what I am sure lies ahead."

She let go of my body then seated herself. I could feel her eyes on me as I served her. There was no escaping the conversation this time. In truth, I was relieved that the last of my secrets and my past would no longer be solely mine.

As she ate the gourmet meal of beef stroganoff, asparagus with hollandaise sauce, and crème brulee for dessert, that incredible mixture of vampire blood bond and supernatural magic that had become a complete part of my lover, surrounded and soothed me so lovingly, I was prepared to face what I knew was waiting for me in France.

I watched her thoughtful expression as she swallowed the last of the Bordeaux from her wine goblet. The first words that came out of her fresh emotions after my intense narrative delighted me. "Would you mind if I borrow some of your T-shirts for my trip?"

"Why?" I asked, not sure what her answer was going to be.

"They're big and comfortable, and they smell of you. Since I can't have the real thing while we're separated, I'll settle for the shirts off your back," she teased.

"I'll let you have them with a condition. You wear one each time we have phone sex."

Sookie stood up and straddled her legs across my thighs on the comfortable, high-backed side chair. Seductively, her lips tickled their way from my ear down my jaw to my throat. Just barely touching her mouth to mine, she whispered, "Deal."

We'd never had sex in the dining room of our home. As my lover eagerly undressed me by the glowing candlelight, I found this fresh, erotic experience to be one that bore repeating in the future.

* * *

When he woke from his day sleep, Rasul had found notes from both his boss and Sookie. Eric's final instructions before he left for Europe the next morning were on a long, lined Post-It note stuck to the steering wheel of the new Range Rover that was parked in the guesthouse garage. It had been decided it would make a much richer impression on the scumbags they were after than his Crown Vic. The note reminded him, again, that the Were patrols would be resuming once Sookie got back from her Denver trip. Eric had made the arrangements himself with Alcide since he suspected she would be back in Shreveport well before he was. Sookie's neatly scribbled note on pastel pink stationery adorned with frolicking bunnies was held on the refrigerator door by a pelican magnet. It gave him the phone number for Culinary Delights so he could reorder his stash of TrueBlood as needed. She'd also drawn a caricature of a winking eye under her signature.

His appointment tonight was part two of Eric's special assignment. The attractive young woman from Harris Security Systems had followed closely beside him as they'd toured the large empty house. The real estate agent who worked for Eric had chosen this house because of its size and complex design. It was perfect bait for the trap he and Eric had planned to flush the culprits responsible for the faulty installation done on Sookie's family home.

Like the loyal vampire soldier he always was, he knew the job came first. He did allow himself a cautious admission that his second meeting with the tiny, dark-eyed woman was becoming more than work. He'd always been highly attracted to delicate Asian women. Even her name, Lacie, was exquisite. She was as exotically beautiful as she was thoroughly professional. He sincerely hoped she was not directly involved with her employer's perfidy.

Back in the ceramic-tiled foyer at the foot of the staircase, Rasul said, "My employer would appreciate a full estimate by tomorrow."

A quick once-over of the paperwork on her clipboard then she looked up and smiled. "No problem. It will be ready by noon. Does your boss prefer hard copy or e-mail?'

"E-mail, please," Rasul smiled back. "Now that our business is concluded, would you accompany me to dinner, Miss Chen?" His usually charming voice was enhanced by a touch of vampire influence. Now all he needed was for her eyes to meet his.

After putting her pen and clipboard into her very large purse, she looked up at him. "Thanks for the invitation…" then she transferred her gaze back to her purse. Reaching in, her hands came up pointing a forty-millimeter Glock pistol directly at his chest "…but I have other plans."

Rasul attempted to capture her eyes again but she simply blinked away his influence. Her grip and her aim held steady. "Don't try that again, vampire. I use Lone Ranger bullets."


	7. Chapter 7

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 7

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice-The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: My deepest apologies for the lateness of this chapter. And how long it turned out to be. Eric's time in France needed to cover a great deal of back story and explanation of what's really going on in the vamp world. Chapter 8, which is already in first draft form, will be much shorter, posted much sooner and is much happier than this chapter.

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 7

He'd seen enough human westerns and cop shows to know what he should do next. Slowly, Rasul raised his arms high into the air in surrender.

The Glock didn't waver at all. "I don't know who you're working for, and I really don't care. I suggest you back off from this private investigation of yours before you blow my cover, and get me killed."

Lacie's tone was so strong and straightforward, he sensed she'd had to use that tough attitude often in a law enforcement capacity. Keeping his arms where they were, he asked, "Are you working for a state agency or the Feds?"

"You first," she demanded.

"I'm the personal bodyguard to Eric Northman, vampire sheriff of Area Five here in northern Louisiana. The company you're investigating is complicit in a plot to assassinate him."

Her small-boned body moved into a less aggressive stance. The pistol in her very steady hands remained pointed at his chest. "Then we have the same goal, Mr. Halim. Your amateur sleuthing is putting our investigation in jeopardy so we'd appreciate it if you left the matter to the professionals."

"Your credentials?" he asked coolly.

This time Lacie Chen dropped her arms slowly to her sides. "I'm part of a special FBI unit attached to the Department of Justice. Our task force is involved with national and international vampire matters along with the CIA."

"Very impressive." Noting the more relaxed set of her expression, Rasul suggested, "Perhaps we can be of assistance to each other." When she didn't protest, he pressed further, "I know an excellent Szechuan restaurant. We could talk further over dinner?"

The beautiful dark eyes grew softer. "I'm allergic to Chinese food, and it's not the msg."

Rasul knew he had her interest without any need for a glamour. "Italian, perhaps? Angelo's Ristorante in Bossier City is known for its veal piccata. Paper thin sautéed slices of milk-fed veal with an exquisite sauce of lemon, white wine, shallots and butter." With his fingers, he blew a kiss into the air.

"How would a blood drinking vampire know that?" she asked with a wisp of a smile.

"I have many human friends," he answered simply.

This time her smile was open and teasing. "All women, I'll bet."

As he opened the front door of the empty house for her, Rasul couldn't help a self-congratulatory grin. His sexy charm had won again. Even better, he felt sure this very feisty Federal agent was going to keep him on his toes as they got to know each other, professionally, and personally.

* * *

The pilot gave a condensed weather report for the passengers as my plane approached Denver International Airport that the temperature had warmed to a balmy twenty-nine degrees. Luckily, I had all my snuggies from my Vancouver honeymoon. I was very glad I'd worn multiple layers of them.

I was also glad I'd had those quiet hours on the plane to think of Eric. The last time we were separated by miles and time zones, at least we were on the same continent. This Europe thing was scary in so many ways.

I'd spent the daylight hours yesterday packing, and sorting through the thirty-seven resumes I'd been given so I would be prepared to begin setting up interviews once I got here. As soon as Eric woke, we were glued together, physically, mentally and emotionally. It came so naturally now, we didn't have to will it in any way. I knew I'd be in Denver only until Saturday. Eric had no idea how long his meeting in France would take. I hoped I wouldn't have to use all his T-shirts. That's why our bond was especially intense. We would need that closeness to sustain us during our separation.

The equally intense talking had picked up where we'd left off at dawn when Eric had gone into his day sleep. My questions rolled out of my mouth like a giant tsunami. My beloved never faltered or refused to answer. His life before me and the entire history of the vampire race were, at last, truly mine to share. Hearing all the details behind his long buried secret, I understood where his loss of control New Year's Eve night had come from.

I'd always known how dangerous Eric could be. I'd seen him in a blood lust rage that night on the highway after my dinner with Niall when that guy had tried to kill me. I'd have been pretty stupid to ignore the reality of how violent his past as a thousand year old vampire had been, heavily laced with all the stereotypical evil that made up the legend and mythos. Once I made my commitment to him, I'd consigned all of it to either necessity or his past that was no longer actively a part of his vampire existence. Knowing the truth now, that he had also been a high ranking assassin for the European Consortium, was another part of what made him the man I loved in this day and time. I know how crazy it sounded, but our blood bond didn't lie about the person I knew my mate to be.

After he'd finished his packing, we made love one last time. The one last time _did_ turn into multiple chapters. Even though I was drained from our repeated lovemaking, I slept fitfully, worried as hell about what was waiting for Eric in France. Meanwhile he made final phone calls regarding his businesses and my security.

I was awake at dawn just after he'd gone into his travel coffin. I'd had to rely on Bobby to supervise the Anubis pickup later in the morning. Before I left for my early flight, I stood beside the grey metal container that still gave me the willies. Recalling the vivid images I'd seen from Eric's sleeping mind during the weeks after the Fae War, but before I'd broken my silence to him, I touched the cool metal with my warm hand and willed my husband to dream while he slept, today and each day we would be apart. I hoped with my newly discovered supernatural power, I would again be able to access his dreams. Throughout my flight, I'd concentrated on him, but there was nothing. He was deeply asleep during his long flight. I had actually been relieved that he was sleeping so soundly. Looking at my watch, I counted the seven hours until I would be able to hear his voice again.

As I walked down the terminal concourse toward the baggage claim area, I mentally switched gears. Along with my job that I was being very well paid to do, there was the challenge of repairing and rerouting my old relationship with Quinn. I wasn't surprised to see him standing underneath the sign where my flight's passengers were congregating to pick up their luggage.

I stopped directly in front of him. As always, his tangled shifter brain was a puzzle. Those pansy purple eyes with their dark depths said far more about his true feelings for me as they devoured my face.

His voice was deep but the words came out almost shyly. "I'm not sure what to call you. Babe is far too intimate for where we are now. Mrs. Northman is too cold and formal."

"It's Sookie, and always will be to you." Smiling, I added, "It's good to see you again, Quinn."

With a sure decision, I hugged my former lover "hello". He returned the embrace, but very carefully. Despite all the hurt and disappointment in the past, I truthfully admitted that if there were no Eric, Quinn's arms would be the ones in my life.

* * *

The small Anubis Air jet taxied to a stop in front of a private hanger away from the public area of Perpignan airport. Being on European soil for the first time in sixty-two years, I reconfirmed the decision I had made two nights ago in Sookie's arms. The time had come to face the last of my Old World demons and put it to rest. I felt a wonderful sense of relief, a release from a ghost I had thought long subdued and banished.

A wizened septuagenarian came up to me as I stepped off the plane.

"Monsieur Northman?"

"Oui."

Holding up a car remote on a gold keychain, he said in French, _"For you from Monsieur Bellerie," _then pointed to a red Bentley Continental GTC convertible parked outside the hanger.

"Merci," I said taking the keychain. As the pleasant little man walked away, I picked up my 29-inch piece of luggage and headed for the vehicle. I had packed heavily, not knowing how long I would be away. The overstuffed suitcase just fit in the trunk.

Slipping into the driver's seat, I drew in the scent of the new leather in the luxuriously appointed interior. My mentor had remained faithful to his decades old choice of automobile. I wondered what newer vehicles he had added to his vintage car collection since I last saw him.

I would have been more comfortable if I had worn my casual T-shirt and jeans instead of the Louis Vuitton charcoal wool suit, bespoken navy shirt and coordinated navy and white striped tie. Another of my mentor's quirks was his old-fashioned dress code so I was attired formally out of respect for him. The one line I had drawn was my refusal to wear black. It was the required uniform at Fangtasia, what the humans expected a vampire to look like. It was not, however, who I dressed to please in my personal life.

The key caught and the engine engaged with a powerful vibration. In seconds I had accelerated to 100 kilometers, my dress shoe clad foot pressing firmly on the gas pedal to carry me away from the airfield. As the speedometer inched higher, I smiled gratefully that my mentor had remembered how much I enjoyed the thrill of speed.

My loose hair whipped behind me as I raced through the Mediterranean influenced cool night air under a starlit sky. It was an invigorating combination as I headed toward my mentor's estate that he had named Marie Claire for an undisclosed reason when he had settled the land centuries ago.

Once outside of the city limits, the roads around the vineyards were as familiar to me as the ones at home. In the depth of the darkness, I felt many old memories stir to life. I had been away from the Continent for so many decades. Yet the beauty of this Old World still affected me. I had been born here. My first wife and children, though long turned to dust, were here. All that I was now in my immortality had been forged here.

Despite all that personal history, I had stayed away for one painful reason. If my mentor, Gaston Bellerie, hadn't summoned me, I would have continued my self-imposed exile. That wasn't his real name, and he wasn't French. Only he knew his true origin. But after 3,285 years of immortality, it no longer mattered. He, and now Sookie, knew why I had willingly abandoned my old life.

Gaston was the epitome of nurture taming nature in a vampire. He was the oldest that we knew of anywhere. Ocella and Godfrey had been a paltry two millenniums, and they were both dead. He had taught me that the innate compulsions that had altered my original human behavior at the time of my turning were actually malleable. I could choose how to live my vampire existence.

Once free of Ocella, and with Gaston's encouragement and support, I had chosen to reclaim who I had been as a human, a warrior and a lover. There were times over the centuries when I had given in to the corruption and evil of my kind. It had been a harsh struggle to go against that turned nature, but I found the balance again each time.

The majority of old vampires I had known over the centuries had been so jaded with living, I wondered why they had continued their existence. Most had met their final death by one means or another over time. The rare old ones left had continued to search in hopes of "feeling" something again. There was still the hunt and the conquest for them. Others were simply too afraid of what lay in true death.

Again, Gaston had taught me to look beyond the tedium of survival, the hiding from humans and from daylight. This new human era that had started with the discovery of what they had named the New World and escalated with their Industrial Revolution had given me so many opportunities to grow, experience and enjoy life. The European world with all its flaws had become revitalized. The exciting avenues of discovery, of forward thinking innovation I had taken advantage of as the human world advanced and modernized still amazed me. Integrating human practices into my vampire traditions opened a dual world of adventure and monetary success. Sadly, the scientific and technological advances had also given said humans more devastating ways of destroying each other, and us.

To the good in this new millennium, that same technology and science had given my race the synthetic blood that finally freed us to make ourselves known. Despite all the unique problems our coming out of hiding had created, we had gained so much. The best of them for me was that I was now settled into an acceptable relationship with a human woman I adored beyond words.

My heavy foot and the powerful engine had made the miles seem like inches. The imposing thirty-room country house loomed invitingly in the darkness, lights blazing from every ground floor window. A spectacular light show illuminated the grounds, reminding me of the excess of holiday decorating the humans did at their Christmas season. Turning onto the paved road that led to the main house, I slowed. My old memories and the fresh perceptions my eyes were taking in wanted time to assimilate the changes I was seeing.

I parked in front of the elaborate stone staircase and stepped out of the car. An adolescent human male hurried down the steps, bowed from the waist and took the key. In a rush of French, he told me he would deliver my luggage to my room, and that my mentor was waiting in the library. The servant sped away in the GTC, gears grinding noisily, down the left side road I knew led to the garages.

Glancing around, I saw that Gaston had done some refurbishing in the front gardens over the years. I chuckled that the hideous topiary tree sculptures I had always hated were gone, replaced by various specimen trees, shrubs and flowerbeds. My smaller scale gardens on my Shreveport property paled in comparison. The overall look had an Oriental feel to it that I found quite pleasant.

The Italian Renaissance fountain that had been hit by a stray American bomb just before the Southern France invasion had never been replaced. The center courtyard had been integrated into the redesigned garden giving the house a true country look rather than the stylized chateau of the past. I was eager to see the back of the house, wondering what fresh creative beauty Gaston had experimented with there.

Looking up at the darkened second floor, I noticed that the balcony railings that wrapped around the four corner windows of what had been my suite of rooms on the left had a new look. Gaston's identical balcony around his suite on the right was a perfect match to mine. I couldn't help a light laugh. After all this time, I still felt possessive about this beautiful place.

The tall, graceful windows and strategically placed French doors throughout the house looked naked without the heavy oak shutters that had been used to darken all the rooms during daylight. I was sure I would find a more than adequate version of a modern light-blocking interior treatment similar to what I had installed at home.

My eyes went back to the wraparound balcony encircling my windows. Until this moment, I had not realized how relieved I was that Gaston had not set our meeting at his townhouse in Paris. That old building held far too many traumatic memories for me. It was where Ocella had brought me, after dragging me with him across the European continent for over a decade, to show me off to his fellow vampires at a party on Halloween night. As if it were only yesterday, my body stung with the remembered pain of abuse and agonizing hunger that engulfed me that night as it had every night for the years I had been kept by my maker.

I forced those memories away as I went up the well-worn stone steps. This place had been my refuge even before it had existed as a building. At the elaborately carved front door, I raised my hand to the ornate brass unicorn head knocker I had purchased from a local artisan centuries ago. The door opened to my knock, and a grandmotherly grey-haired woman with sharp hazel eyes and a huge welcoming smile greeted me. I returned the smile and entered the foyer. As I stepped across the threshold, I walked into another time and knew I was safely home again.

Standing at the center of the spacious tiled foyer, I scanned left to right, refreshing my mind as to the placement of the ground floor rooms. Along with the names of the numerous rooms, formal dining room, ballroom, music room, library, game room, kitchen among them, a flood of old memories assailed me again. As the power and influence of the Consortium had grown, so had the events this house had hosted. Humans as well as vampires had mingled freely and lavishly, and Gaston had been the fulcrum of it all.

I looked up the grand staircase. The highly polished dark wood banister gleamed as perfectly as I remembered it. My curiosity to see my suite of rooms pricked at me then I reined it in. I was here on very serious business that took precedent over a social visit. With an inner shake of my head, I suppressed my nostalgic urge.

At another exquisitely carved wooden door, I knocked firmly. Gaston's powerful voice responded clearly from the other side, and I opened the door. Waves of heat from the heavily stoked marble fireplace reached through the air that smelled of very old leather-bound books and smoky spices. I stopped in front of the Queen Anne wingback chair my mentor was enthroned on at the center of the room.

I bowed deeply from the waist then looked into his deep-set almond shaped eyes that were watching me closely from under his thick eyebrows that almost merged above his broad nose. "I would politely state that you look very well after all these years, Gaston. Of course, since you are vampire, it is a foolish human comment."

His little smile that barely registered on his wide slash of full lips told me he understood my attempt at vampire humor. "It is true that we do not age. But the weight of immortality rests more heavily on some." In an eye blink, strong, ancient arms embraced me tightly and said, "I have missed you, my Eric."

The pull from the unusual blood bond Gaston and I had formed all those centuries ago was revived in our embrace. I felt our old closeness of parent and child reemerge, overcoming our long separation. I returned the embrace freely, holding my mentor's shorter but very powerful body close for several more moments.

Gaston broke the hold with a joyous laugh that reverberated through my body as well as echoing in my ears. Pointing to the second richly upholstered wing chair that was placed opposite to his with a low serving table in between, Gaston said, "Please, sit. You must be hungry after your long flight."

"A TrueBlood would be appreciated."

"I can provide more appropriate human refreshment," he said casually.

"I feed only from my wife."

With a flash of surprise, he responded, "Ah, a truly faithful mate."

"In every way," I stated proudly.

With a deeper smile, Gaston reached for the intercom on the end table beside his chair. In French, he ordered my TrueBlood and a drink for himself from the kitchen staff person who had answered his call.

While he talked, I couldn't help admiring the impeccably tailored outfit my mentor had chosen to wear for our reunion. The ruby red velvet smoking jacket combined with his vividly expressive milk chocolate brown eyes created an air of timelessness around him. The white linen shirt, ruffled at the open neckline, showed a swatch of his dark, curly chest hair. The equally ruffled cuffs spilling out of the armholes gave him the appearance of a rakish dandy as he sat back in the elegant antique chair, one leg carefully crossed over the other. Black velvet trousers and patent leather slip-ons without socks completed his outfit. He looked like the perfect country gentleman. Suppressing a laugh at my grandiose imagery, I recalled that I had seen Gaston fight in combat too many times to be truly fooled by his benign outward appearance.

On the end table beside the intercom box, a large amber glass ashtray was half filled with stubs of his custom made cheroots that he had been smoking since the late eighteenth century. They were the source of the pungent blend of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and ginger I had noticed on entering the room.

His conversation ended, he turned to me. In Italian, he asked, _"Which language do you prefer nowadays, Viking? You have learned so many. I am sure it is not the dead old Latin of that traitorous animal who sired you." _

Gaston's usually fleeting accent that I had never been able to place other than it was Indo European in origin was heavily noticeable. His centuries old hatred of my maker came through clearly in his words, and didn't surprise me. That he had used the word "traitorous" confirmed a suspicion of mine.

Staying with the language I had adopted more than half a century ago, I answered, "American English is what I am most comfortable with in my daily life. The colloquialisms and slang are both funny and challenging. My woman has found my usages quite amusing on occasion. My child Pam and I converse in Old Norse when privacy between us is required. The times Alec and I have met since I settled in North America, we always revert to the Gaelic he had taught me during our travels after the Third Crusade."

"How is your eldest child, the priest?"

"Still in Toronto. Pam is there on vacation."

"After a century apart, they reunited when you sent her to safety in the United States after the Blitz?"

"Even for vampires, love and fidelity are powerful emotions."

This time Gaston laughed. "While you always preferred the human women. I remember all those nights of raucous pleasure here in this house. Your endless stream of ménage a trios partners."

"I was making up for lost time with their blood and their bodies."

"And healing the damage you had hidden for so long."

"The last of that disappeared when I found Sookie. Along with my body and my heart,

she has my blood. All my physical unions before her were purely sex play and held no emotional bond of any kind."

"And your soul?"

"If I have one, it is also hers. Alec believes we still possess them."

"Still hanging on to his priestly humanity, I see."

This time I laughed, knowing that the implied cynicism was only a front. After I had brought Alec here to become fully oriented to his new vampire state, a confrontational friendship had developed between my first child and my adopted sire. Gaston appeared to be approximately forty human years when he had been turned. He could easily have been my human sire. Since he had no living vampire children, he had expropriated my vampire child into our immortal family. Their regular religious and philosophical debates had often become contentious disagreements, quite loud, vehement, and for them enjoyable.

There was a short knock on the door signaling the arrival of our refreshments.

"Entree," Gaston called.

The smiling, hazel-eyed woman who had greeted me at the front door entered with a small tray containing my bottle of TrueBlood, a heavily etched crystal goblet and a large brandy snifter half-filled with a bitingly aromatic cognac I could smell.

After the woman put the tray on the low table, she bent close to Gaston's ear and whispered in French, _"Your son is still as beautifully handsome as he was when he left us."_

I was startled at the woman's compliment, but the warmth of her words made me respond, also in French, _"Thank you, madam. Your smile when I arrived and your kind words make me feel very welcome."_

Her hand quickly covered her mouth in embarrassment while a heavy flush crept into her cheeks. _"Your pardon, master Eric," _she mumbled in Frenchand rushed out the door closing it firmly behind her.

Gaston's soft, indulgent laugh was a surprise. "She has been flustered with anticipation that you were returning for a visit." At my puzzled expression, he explained, "You don't remember the toe-headed little angel who used to follow you around at every opportunity? Genevieve was inconsolable for months after you left."

The memory of the sweet little eight-year old girl who had had an obvious crush on me so long ago was touching to my revived human perception. Back then it had been more than annoying.

"She married a local boy who became my master vintner in time. Her eldest son is named Eric. Of the long line of housekeepers who have served me, she is the one I have come to care for the most."

"You have always inspired intense loyalty from the families who have lived here over the centuries." Unable to avoid some very honest vampiric thoughts, I admitted, "If I had stayed, I am sure she would have become one of my bedmates when she matured."

With a knowing nod, Gaston reached over, poured a hearty splash of TrueBlood into the goblet, handed it to me then lifted his glass of cognac. "To past good times and to the numerous ones still to come."

We clinked glasses and took generous swallows. "Is that cognac one of your own creations?" I asked curiously. My mentor had his own distillery in the cavernous basement along with the vast buildings that were part of the vineyard proper. He was known for his genius experimentation with his land's bounty.

"Of course. I still control every aspect of quality and variety that comes from this vineyard."

I snickered quietly. Though Western Europe as a whole had now fully accepted our emergence thanks primarily to the vast wealth my race had accumulated, there were still pockets of secrecy to be maintained. If the world at large knew that one of the premier French wineries was owned and controlled by a vampire, they would be stunned.

"You have always preferred absinthe for as long as I have known you, Gaston. Why the change?"

He snorted loudly. "Now that the wormwood beverage is legal, its consumption no longer thrills me. Anything alcoholic suffices to pleasure me along with these," and he took one of his cheroots out of the intricately tooled leather case on the end table, lit it with a tortoiseshell inlaid lighter and inhaled deeply. "My vices have mellowed or expanded, depending on your perception, my son. But they are ongoing."

Vampires who smoked and drank were rare. At Gaston's age, since he required so little blood to survive, he was more than entitled to his little foibles. I couldn't help laughing at the religious-based reference, however. "Perhaps if I achieve your advanced age, I will take up one or more of your vices."

"_If_ you achieve my advanced age?" he asked with a frown.

The banter my adopted father and I had engaged in suddenly became heavy with the reality of the vampire business that had brought me here. My profound silence was broken by Gaston's pointed change of subject.

"I have heard so much about your beautiful and gifted human woman who has stolen your heart. She is also part fae great-granddaughter to our old adversary Niall Brigant. What an amazing combination she is. Would you have a photograph to share?"

Extracting my wallet from the inside pocket of my jacket, I said, "I have several." Choosing the one I liked best, I took it out of the plastic holder and handed it to him. "This was taken the evening of our human wedding."

Gaston's warm eyes seemed to be devouring the image on the small piece of paper. "So very beautiful together. I am overjoyed that you are no longer alone." Looking directly at me, he said, "I was right to give you to Sophie-Anne."

Arching an eyebrow sharply, I asked, "How did you _give me_ to Sophie-Anne?"

"By intentionally losing a game of chemin de fer."

"It is impossible to cheat at baccarat," I stated adamantly.

In answer, Gaston raised his bushy, almost-black eyebrows at me. "When she and Andre visited soon after the war ended, she told me she was looking for a capable, experienced vampire manager for the largest area of her territory. I knew she would never ask for you outright since I had made it very clear to everyone that I had groomed you to replace me as Consul General when I finally retired. I also knew you needed to get away from here."

I couldn't speak for several minutes. "So you wagered me and lost."

Again, a change of subject ended another weighty silence. "Does your mate know what you suffered those years with Ocella?"

Taking a deep, steadying breath, I let that part of my past come to the surface. "Not the day by day graphic details. I have let her feel all the old pain and despair through our blood bond so the ugly words weren't necessary." I felt Gaston reach out with his comforting compassion and love, and was able to continue. "I have told her how you broke Ocella's stranglehold on me. That you took me in, and fed me your own blood to nourish my nearly starved body and heal me of the humiliation and degradation he had subjected me to for all those years."

My voice stronger, I moved on to what I considered the true beginning of my life as a vampire. "I explained that when I was recovered enough to travel, you packed up a horse-drawn wagon with tools and took me with you to this land that you had chosen to settle on away from Paris. The work was hard that first day, cutting down trees and digging an underground hiding place for us to shelter in before the sun came up again. You continued to feed me your blood each night until I was a truly strong and healthy vampire. Most of all, you made me feel safe and worthwhile as a man again."

"What has her reaction been to all this?" he asked gently.

With complete confidence in my adopted sire's understanding, I concluded, "She loves me even more because of what I have overcome. I have given my beloved, whom I trust implicitly, our complete personal history and that of our race. She has become so fully accepting of our place on this earth and our organization and involvement in human events she has agreed that when the time is right she will become one of us so we can share eternity."

The weight of Gaston's swirling emotions made me wait out his thoughtful silence. Grimly, he asked, "Ocella is dead, correct?"

"Why do you ask?" Even from this man who was so close to me, I felt the need to protect my younger child from any possibility of vampire justice.

"The rogue assassin in Vancouver was one of his spawn. He was hired by an unknown party but his personal hatred toward you spurred his actions even further."

"That is why I felt a familiar presence. Are there more of my siblings around?"

"Possibly. As if treason weren't enough, the conspirators and their rogue allies have added an additional sin to their list: an organized program of vampire procreation to swell their ranks."

I was surprised at Gaston's second religious reference. It was true that he had been in the thick of the church/state conflicts of the Middle Ages. He had been the prime mover in creating our organization that had brought order out of the human barbarism that surrounded us through civility and rules of behavior for our race. Having a former priest as his first "grandchild" had been more than an avenue of academic debate.

"I have hesitated to bring up this last subject but it must be dealt with before we can go into the real reason for this meeting." At my accepting nod, he continued, "Since you have been totally open with your mate, I presume she knows the truth of why you left Europe."

"My last assignment for the Consortium and the murders I committed," I said resignedly.

"Despite your Viking heritage, you have never been senselessly violent, Eric. That was never your way, as a human or as a vampire. Justinian and his vampire woman deserved to die. They had been judged and sentenced according to our laws."

The shadowy memories took hold of me as soon as the words were spoken. The bloody vampire battle with my two targets had left me so damaged and weak, I had lost all control that night despite my victory. "The human woman and her child were innocents. I am guilty of their murders."

"Yes, you are."

I was stunned at Gaston's honest agreement then nonplussed by his questions that followed. "What do you feel would have been a proper punishment for you? Would the biblical justice of an eye for an eye have been sufficient?"

"Yes."

One of those otherworldly expressions I remembered so clearly suffused Gaston's face. His unfocused eyes moved rapidly while his body was frozen in place. Though not my true sire, I had had enough of his blood to feel this internal change in him. It had created such a unique tie between us that we could read each other's emotions at will. His voice became hard, "Your death would have condemned many who live now to premature deaths, humans and supernaturals."

Stealing myself for his answer, I asked, "Who would be dead?"

"Both your vampire children, all the Area Five people, dozens of vampires, Weres, shifters, even fairies, including your beloved Sookie. All because you were not there to protect them."

"Is this one of your visions of the past?"

"Yes."

My mentor's gift for prophecy was complex and frustratingly limited. It provided only alternate images of the past. He had never been able to foresee the future. "I wish you could see into my future this time."

"A gift of prophecy is not needed to know that without you countless supernaturals as well as humans will perish if you do not lead this fight. I can assure you that you will not die, my Eric. Your beloved and your children will need you in the years ahead."

I felt the urge to rage at my destiny that had put me in this untenable position. The current crisis had pulled me back to my old life with its stigma of imprimatured assassin. I had become an out-of-control murderer then. The struggle to come back had taken many months. Trust in myself, in my recovery, had taken much longer. After what I had done to Sookie New Year's Eve night, I feared it would happen again.

There was also an added element haunting me. I had never hesitated to engage in a fight or a major battle, always sure that my abilities and cunning would prevail. Before I had only my immortality to lose. Now my life encompassed so much more.

"You have given me only bits and pieces of information, Gaston, but no real reason other than an obvious internal power struggle." And I _needed_ a reason, other than just vampire politics, to risk everything.

Sitting forward in his chair, the ancient vampire became transformed. He was again the all-powerful Consul General, nostrils flaring, chin jutting, broad shoulders set aggressively under his tight, wavy, shoulder-length almost-black hair. In the too familiar deadly timbre of his powerful voice that had made the likes of Ocella and Sophie-Anne cringe, Gaston asked, "What shall we discuss first, my Eric? Victor Madden? The contract that is in play to end your existence? Or the conspiracy of traitors and rogue vampires determined to bring down our established political structure?"

I met his dominance with my own self-assurance. "All of those and why you brought me here?"

Leaning back again, his voice moderated greatly. "Then I will start with the bottom line objective to all this mayhem. The ultimate goal of all this destabilization, which they know will take decades, is to gain full domination over the human race. In their estimation, the Great Revelation was a betrayal of our heritage as a superior race. Those of us who currently rule are being far too cooperative and sharing with the humans, giving away too much accumulated vampire wealth. Vampires like you and myself are to be eliminated."

My anger held sway for a moment then became something else. I asked the question that would make me the designated leader I could not walk away from. "Other than Victor in my country, who are the ringleaders in each part of the world?"

With an accepting nod, he answered, his flow of emotions filled with pride, relief and hope, "Victor is actually primary in most of the Americas. Gideon Forrester in Canada is Alec's target. You will learn who the other traitors are and who their counterparts are on our side when you delve into the computer system I have had set up in my office which will now be yours. I also had a laptop installed in your sitting room upstairs for your convenience."

Keeping the bitter sarcasm under control, I joked, "It is too bad we cannot return to the old ways of simple assassination. I was very good at that for centuries. In today's world, killing them outright would be like hacking individual heads from a hydra. More would quickly take their places."

"Your instincts are impeccable, Viking, which is why you are the ideal leader for this battle that is just as much of wits as it is of brute force."

"I really do not have a choice."

"No, and I regret that. Circumstances are working against our very survival. You are the leader we need to crush Victor, his allies and the entire rogue army."

I couldn't help a very harsh laugh. "In other words, we are risking our immortal lives to save the human race's asses."

"Do you object to that?" he asked with a neutral inflection in his voice.

"As a vampire, I should, but I do not. Despite all the human haters, their race does not deserve to be enslaved. My wife is the perfect example of why humans need to survive. Without her, my life would be empty."

"In my long existence, I have heard only one other vampire profess such a love for a human," he said wistfully.

"You?" I asked respectfully. Over the centuries, I knew Gaston had many human women as lovers. Yet, in the first decades of the twentieth century, there had been none. His natural vampire lusts, for blood and for sex, had become impaired by too many wars and revolutions.

Gaston's wise, calm eyes took on an unexpected look of sadness. "Alas, I was never so fortunate." He went to one knee beside my chair on the antique Oriental rug, and placed his broad, muscular hands on my shoulders. I could feel the warmth of his fatherly empathy through my deeply troubled thoughts. "You should rest and reflect on everything I have told you before you begin actively working. I have left your rooms exactly as they were, including your antique sleigh bed. The bedding and linens are all new, of course."

I couldn't help a smile at the pure caring and goodness of my adopted sire. "After all the changes I noticed outside, I thought you would have redecorated the entire house."

"I prefer my comfortable old possessions, adding only select artwork to my existing collections as contemporary culture has changed. Just as you used to do in your travels. Do you still have the tansu chest I sent over with your other possessions?"

"It graces my bedroom at home. Sookie uses it for her growing wardrobe of feminine finery." Gaston stood and I followed. "Have you changed the gardens at the back of the house as you have the front, my father?"

Glowing with pride and happiness, he answered, "Oh, yes. I have had an in-ground pool installed as well. It is fully enclosed and heated so I can indulge myself even on the coldest winter evening. I am sure I can find a swimsuit for you. Or would you prefer au natural, my son?"

Despite the grim days ahead, we laughed freely as we went out to the foyer and up the main staircase to our respective suites.

* * *

After unpacking and changing into more comfortable jeans, T-shirt and sneakers, I was given a detailed tour of the expanded back gardens and their rows of greenhouses. The staid designs of the past had been transformed into pockets of international flora displays, Gaston explained. Of course, at this time of winter in both the back and front gardens, the trees were leafless and the flowerbeds barren. I did enjoy my adopted sire's horticultural knowledge and enthusiasm that was another of his vast interests. If ever a vampire could be honored with the description of Renaissance man, it was he.

With apologies, I begged off his request to join him in the Olympic-sized pool, wishing to go for a walk around the estate instead. Sensing my need for contemplative solitude, he went ahead with his nightly exercise routine of laps in the bathhouse pool, its daylight sealed glass panels uncovered to the night sky. He invited me to stop by later if I felt the need of a good soak in the luxuriously equipped spa he had recently added.

My simple walk turned into a very long journey, many miles away at the center of a winter dormant grapevine field. Like the Marie Claire gardens, they were silent, patiently waiting for spring.

Even though I had used a normal human pace to reach the spot, I was not tired in any way. The sweet smell of the rich earth drifted around me on the wind, and I breathed in greedily.

In the peaceful night, I spoke openly to Sookie, hoping she would hear me as she had that night on the mountain. Her clear, soothing response was strong and beautiful to my hungry heart. I knew the good feelings were more than simply my own mind directing me. As the minutes slipped by, I felt calm and invigorated, with a powerful need to begin my work. My return to the house was a swift, eager vampire run.

* * *

The E(E)E/SE office on the twelfth floor of a 17th street district office building was relatively small. What saved it from being totally nondescript (I'd snuck a peek at the calendar page for this date before I left for the airport) was how tastefully it had been decorated. The Western motif featured prints and artwork by a mixture of Native American artists that gave the five compact rooms a decidedly outdoor feel. The Frederic Remington bronze of a rider on a bucking bronco on the low bookcase in the former branch manager's office where I had been ensconced (tomorrow's Word of the Day), told me the guy had been more the cowboy type.

Leaning back in the Staples deluxe model executive chair, I watched the gently falling sheet of snow dance through the lights of the business district. Darkness had fallen thickly, so I knew it was well past the normal quitting time.

It had been a hectic day here in Denver, but I'd been able to sense Eric as soon as he'd come awake an ocean away. We hadn't been sure how far the blood bond would reach even enhanced by my new supe power. Just in case our bond did reach that far, Eric had warned me and reassured me in that oh so pragmatic way of his so I wouldn't freak when I felt the underlying disquiet of all the unknowns he was facing which would be very real to me as his blood-bonded mate. I'd felt the clash and collision of his emotions as the hours had gone by. The negative undercurrents had come in unpredictable waves. I was very anxious to get to my hotel room so I could fully open myself to him in my mind and on the phone.

Turning toward the door, I smiled as Carol Reynolds, the office manager, came in.

"Here's your interview schedule for tomorrow, Sookie."

"Thanks, Carol." After reviewing her precisely organized list, I looked at her again. I couldn't help staring at the delicate necklace she wore. "That's a dreamcatcher you're wearing, isn't it?"

Fingering the gold chain and intricate piece of jewelry, she answered, "My husband gave it to me for my last birthday."

"It's lovely. I'd like to get one before I leave Denver. The story behind it has personal meaning to me."

"The shop isn't far from here. We could go over there at lunchtime tomorrow. I did leave time for you to have lunch," she laughed.

"I noticed, and yes, we'll do some shopping then. As for tonight, I've already kept you way past your quitting time. Go on home."

"Good night."

As if on cue, Quinn came into the outer office just as Carol exited. Despite how very married to Eric I was, my heart skipped a little beat at the very different image John Quinn projected as he stood in the middle of my small office. He looked the pure westerner I knew he had originally been but had never seen. The tan fleece-lined sheepskin jacket made his already massive shoulders even broader. The simple matching cowboy hat was the finishing touch to this alternate persona. With the glistening snowflakes melting into pinpoints of water, he removed the jacket and hat and hung them on the totem pole coat rack to the right of the doorway. I smiled at the very shiny shaved head.

With a deep intake and exhale of breath, he dropped into the leather armchair in front of the desk. "This is the first day I've been able to get out and do some real SE work in weeks. Thanks for being here, Sookie."

"You're welcome, Quinn. How did your day go?"

"Potentially, very profitable. I have strong prospects or signed contracts for six weddings, two Were rites of passage, two shifter christenings, a turning ceremony, a rebirth emergence, an ashes internment, and the local Wiccan coven is considering an equinox celebration. It should keep me busy into spring."

"Sounds exciting. You have some supernatural celebrations I've never heard of back in Louisiana."

Quinn grinned. "We westerners have always been innovative. Our ancestors were smart enough to give women the vote. Now that we're all out of our respective closets, we want to show that we're just like everyone else. Marriages, births, deaths. The happy and the sad."

"Like the ashes internment?"

"A vamp was murdered by a nestmate. Very sad, but it happens. His other nestmates want a public place where he can be laid to rest and remembered. The vampire trial is scheduled for next month. I'm handling the arrangements." Sitting forward in the chair, he added, "I can give you details of SE's other new offerings over dinner."

"Thanks, but I really want to get settled at my hotel. I promised Eric I'd call him tonight."

Quinn's animated expression went back to the cautious, impersonal look he'd had on his face since he picked me up at the airport. I understood, but it was sad all the same.

"So, how was _your_ day, Sookie?"

"Pretty calm, actually. Tomorrow's the real test. I find out how good I am at interviewing people."

"Isn't that why they hired you, for that special gift of yours? You're respected and trusted by all the diverse supernatural factions. Your ability to read human minds gives all of us an extra layer of security against the haters."

I laughed lightly thinking of the conversation I'd had with my husband when I'd expressed my doubts and fears to him about the job. "Eric agrees and would do the same. He wants to keep me safe but he won't deny other supes my skills. I just hope I don't run out of steam over the next three months visiting field offices, resolving problems and settling disputes."

Quinn smiled in that totally sincere way I remembered. "You'll do fine." He looked at his watch. "It's late and I need to get going too. I promised Frannie dinner from her favorite Mexican restaurant's take out menu one night this week. You have a reservation at the Pedestrian Mall Sheraton. I'll drop you off."

"You live in Denver with your sister?"

"Just outside in the Lakewood suburb. It's Max's house actually."

"How is Frannie doing?"

"Much better, now that I'm around regularly."

"And your mother?"

"Heavily medicated." The tight set of his mouth said more than his words.

Crossing to the coat rack, he took down his hat and coat along with my navy blue overcoat. I stood in front of him, looking deeply into his shielded eyes.

Helping me into my coat, he said, "I'll be out of state on the road all day tomorrow. Won't be back in Denver until Friday."

Quinn's warm hands hesitated briefly on my shoulders then he pulled away.

"Why don't we plan on lunch then?" I asked.

This time his smile was fragile but I could feel his tangled mind relax a little. "I'd like that. You can fill me in on the interviews."

"Of course. You'll be the one working with the person, so the final decision is yours."

With buttoned coats and covered heads, we locked the office and headed for the elevator.

"There are five really good prospects. One in particular would be perfect for this job. I'm keeping my fingers crossed about her," I babbled, feeling my body's physical agitation accelerate. My impatience to be away from this public place was getting thicker as the minutes ticked by. "I should be done by Friday so I can head home to Shreveport on Saturday."

The elevator dinged to a stop. I felt Quinn's hand at the small of my back as I stepped into the waiting car. The familiar warmth he radiated beside me was nice, but all I wanted was to get to my hotel room. Hearing my Viking's voice again had become an overwhelming need that no amount of past nostalgia could fill.

* * *

The spacious ground floor office that adjoined the large conference room at the back of the house was a world unto itself. The top-of-the-line technology that had been crammed into every corner made my relatively sophisticated computer system at home archaic.

Tentatively at first then with increasing confidence and speed, I had unlocked layer after layer of encrypted folders and files, revealing two shadow organizations, the Consortium's key personnel with its allied blocks across the world and the subversives' leadership, all carefully camouflaged behind the public names and faces on each side. I began to feel I was a secret Maquis operative again. I knew Sookie would pose a more contemporary comparison to a vampiric James Bond.

The population statistics and intelligence reports were extensive, encompassing Eastern and Western Europe and the Americas as well as the entire Orient along with Australia and New Zealand. By country and by state, the numbers of vampires on each side were staggering, this despite the purges and outright slaughter in certain parts of the world since the Great Revelation. The human population had no idea how easy it would be for my entire race to conquer them if we chose that path.

Initial contacts and arrangements would require days of work that had to be done from Gaston's sophisticated nerve center. Once in place, secrecy would be the hardest element to maintain for an all-out coordinated attack worldwide, capable of being activated on a moments notice.

As I worked, I realized I had become too used to the benign and conventionally human life of a mainstreamer. The vampires I would be in contact with were a mixed group. Some were men and women I knew from my years as Gaston's diplomatic courier and negotiator, as well as his business representative. Many in Europe were new names and faces that had replaced those who had been slaughtered in World War Two or who had vanished behind the Iron Curtain during the Cold War never to be heard from again.

Despite my age, I was considered one of the new breed of vampire. Along with Alec, I was at the top of the leadership hierarchy pyramid. Putting aside his long history, Gaston was listed only as the leader for the European faction on our side. It coincided with the place he had occupied since his retirement as Consul General for life and the institution of a rotating consulship since then. Of course, he had remained vigilantly active behind the scenes in every way.

While I began formulating strategy, I reminded myself how far our supernatural race of outsiders had come. Our progression and transitions over the centuries had moved inexorably in tandem with the human race since their survival was so tightly tied to our existence and our sustenance. This house had evolved from a hole-in-the-ground hovel to a rich estate worthy of royalty. Though in secret and shadows, my life and that of my race had also evolved into its own grandeur.

My Viking need to test myself by indulging my hunger for adventure and my rabid curiosity had resulted in extensive personal travel across the globe outside my work for the Consortium. My ravenous appetite for new places had expanded exponentially as human transportation had advanced. Whenever I had needed to rest, escape, recover, feel free or revitalize my ties to my vampire heritage, I sought refuge in this sturdy house, my country home filled with beauty, warmth and safety. I reveled in the changes I had found at each homecoming over the centuries. What never changed was Gaston's total, unconditional love.

Life and death for my entire race had never loomed so close. As the hours rushed by, I knew one of two scenarios would occur: either the humans would be conquered and enslaved with those of us, vampire and other supernaturals who opposed the oppressors, being destroyed, or, in fighting for their survival, the humans would end us all, the innocent along with the guilty.

My inner clock knew it was getting late. I shut down the main computer in the downstairs office so I could retire to my suite of rooms upstairs. I stopped in the kitchen to get myself some TrueBlood to see me through the rest of the night. Without my woman's sweet nourishment, I found my energy flagging.

I chatted briefly with Genevieve, attempting to soothe her earlier embarrassment. My sincere questions about her family succeeded in putting her completely at ease, and restored the happy celebration of my homecoming for her.

Upstairs, there had been more changes to my rooms than Gaston had said. A complete home theatre system had been installed enabling me to enjoy a full audio/visual spectrum of entertainment. There was even a modern digital clock included with the cordless phone on my bedside table. My own intercom box connecting me to all rooms in the house did not surprise me.

The direct creature comforts for my body were more than luxurious. The softest Egyptian cotton sheets and a gold silk comforter adorned my large mahogany sleigh bed. The oversized wardrobe contained an assortment of new clothing including a selection of floor length dressing gowns in various rich fabrics, something I had not indulged myself with for decades. Besides the thick towels in my private bathroom, there was a drawer filled with expensive French milled soaps in a variety of fragrances. When the time came for the sun to rise, I would be able to retire freshly bathed and comfortably covered, totally safeguarded by the internal room-darkening system that I could control at the press of a button. The affluent lifestyle in this house was even better than being royalty.

This all sounded so perfect except for the one very important thing that was missing. The twenty-four inch laptop screen on my sitting room desk was open and glowing, demanding my attention. I ignored it. As I paced from room to room waiting for my cell phone to ring, my bare toes became lost in the deep plush fibers of the new wall-to-wall carpeting throughout my suite.

I had felt Sookie probing my sleep during the flight over the Atlantic and her calm satisfaction that I was safe and resting. Amazed and confident at how clearly I sensed her at such a great distance, I reached out to her often during my day. As the complexity and pressure of what was expected of me ballooned, my need for her full presence escalated. My distraction was such that even the ivory color of the carpet reminded me of her wedding gown. Everything I saw or touched or smelled or heard brought back a memory of her. The small quantity of TrueBlood I ingested did nothing to assuage my hunger and had left a bitter taste in my mouth.

My naked body under the sapphire satin dressing gown was painfully demanding a different kind of attention and activity, the comfort only my bonded lover could give me. I had just decided to call her number when the special ringtone on my cell sounded.

"Sookie?" I said anxiously into the mouthpiece.

* * *

I felt Eric's distinctive up-close-and-personal mental touch on my mind with his one word. "Yes, Eric. It's me," and I grabbed onto him tightly through our bond. He was thousands of miles away across an ocean, but I felt him, here, with me, in this room.

My husband's heavy silence made me probe his tightly wound emotions that poured through the phone. I didn't like what I felt. Suppressing my anxiety, I reached out with my twin tools of blood bond and supe magic. I was shocked at what I found. My beloved was choking under a burden he didn't know how to begin explaining.

"So spill, Viking."

"Spill?"

"Talk to me, big guy."

There was a grave silence then an agonized plea, "I need you first, my lover. What are you wearing?"

Switching gears from the practical to the erotic, I answered, "Your lilac silk tee. It's my favorite 'cause it makes those gorgeous sapphire eyes of yours glow with warmth and tenderness when they look at me. The last time you wore it, I couldn't resist licking my way up your body from your belly button to your throat then back down again to your gracious plenty."

A slight tremor in his voice, he added his own fantasy, "If I was with you right now, I would be sucking on your nipples through the silk, first the right one then the left, until they were so hard you'd be screaming in pleasure."

I gulped hungrily, feeling Eric's mouth on me through his emotions.

"Where is your hand, lover?"

"Stroking my clit."

"Spread your legs for me and go to that warm place I adore."

Shivering, I slid my fingers down my swollen folds and began probing my slit until I felt slick wetness. "Where's your hand, Viking?"

"You know where it is," he laughed.

In my head, I saw him become more aggressive with his grip on his long, heavy shaft. "I want to feel you, baby," I begged.

We were both hurting so badly, my fingers and his fist quickly accomplished their goals. My insides spasmed just as Eric shouted one of those Old Norse words he never translated for me, the ones he used in his deepest moments of sexual release.

After my room service dinner and over the next five hours, my man spilled what was on his mind. The threat this time was so enormous, I wished we could go hide somewhere. Without saying it, we used repeated acts of phone sex to keep the scary stuff from overwhelming us. Taking our bodies to fresh levels of creativity and lust helped.

At the end of our final climax, I breathlessly asked my beloved, "Dream of me, my husband."

Through the strong, steady throb of our blood bond, he whispered tenderly, "I will. And you do the same of me, my wife."

Reluctantly, we each pressed the "end" button on our cells. I settled back on the rumpled hotel bed in Eric's lilac tee that smelled so strongly of sex. For tonight, at least, I could fall into a peaceful, content sleep.

* * *

KOSI FM101 had been playing a medley of John Denver songs since Quinn and I had gotten on I-70 headed for Denver International. The earlier sprinkles of snow were increasing steadily as we headed east.

"I really wish you'd wait until tomorrow to fly home. This storm is going to get worse."

Quinn's usual snarly brain wasn't as tightly shielded this Saturday afternoon. His disappointment that our time together was ending had been seeping through since he picked me up at the hotel.

"I checked with the airline. The southern route where I'm going is pretty clear so there's no problem. I really need to get home. I have a ton of laundry to do plus repacking for my next E(E)E assignment in Washington D. C. next Tuesday."

I didn't go into how much more time I needed to spend on the phone with my lover. After three days, our separation had become seriously painful in multiple ways. I had been so excited that I'd been able to feel him in my sleep the last three nights. Even more amazing, we had been sharing each other's dreams. When we'd talked just this morning, I'd felt so many negative emotions thrashing around his vampire being, words like anxiety, fear, frustration, that were so very rare in my man. Most frightening was the strain of responsibility that showed itself when he informed me he would be away for at least another week.

He asked me to get in touch with his tech guy to set up a point-to-point video conferencing expansion of our home computer. Peppering me with computer terms like codec software, webcam, audio output and other terminology that had my head spinning, I listened quietly feeling clearly that his primary reason for the request was so we could actually see each other in real time when we talked. Blind phone sex simply wasn't enough for the total emotional bond we craved in our physical intimacy.

A gust of wind blew a spray of beautifully geometric snowflakes against the windshield of Quinn's Ford Explorer. The wipers and heated glass quickly dispersed them as we sped along the highway.

We had fallen into an awkward silence having already discussed the successful ending of my business visit. The lyrics to "My Sweet Lady" drifted from the audio system's multiple speakers.

I had innocently started to hum when Quinn reached out and hurriedly shut off the radio. The total silence really amplified his unsettled mental and emotional state. He tried to shut it down, but it was too late.

Reading the anguish, I had to ask, "Does that song mean something to you?"

His powerful hands that had been so gentle with me gripped the steering wheel tightly, every muscle and tendon bulging. "That was the way I saw us right from the beginning," his voice a whispered growl.

In place of the physical touch on his arm that I knew would be a mistake, I said, "You're a vital, beautiful man, Quinn. You deserve to love and be loved by a woman you can build a life with, have a home and children." He glanced over at me then went back to glaring at the road ahead. "Not an unattainable memory," I added.

His hands relaxed slightly on the steering wheel but he kept his eyes straight ahead. His voice lost a layer of tenseness, replaced by the tenderness I knew he was so capable of. "You more than anyone should understand that once the heart chooses, it can't settle. Ever."

I was about to utter another trite comment when I felt a tremendous force of energy approaching the car from behind us. That supe power of mine flashed an image of impending fatal disaster into my mind. I grabbed at the steering wheel with all the strength my vampire blood enhanced body possessed and wrenched it far to the left out of Quinn's control.

Impact after impact crashed into the SUV from behind, propelling us at the vehicles in front of us. The redirected wheels carried us into the center median until we were sandwiched between it and the growing pile-up of cars. The impact repercussions continued as the SUV imploded around us. I was trapped, surrounded by twisted metal, shattered glass and plastic, and Quinn's large body. The sweet, coppery smell of blood, his and mine, flooded my nostrils. Almost as an afterthought, a horrendous flash of pain cut into my chest, and I screamed Eric's name. Then nothing.


	8. Chapter 8

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice-The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: Here's the one all of you have been waiting for! Chapter 9, which is the last for this part of my story, will reveal who was responsible for hiring the assassin who tried to kill Eric on their honeymoon.

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 8

The center video display that was lit on the triple-screened video conferencing system showed my eldest child's faintly ruddy face with its shamrock green eyes. His grim expression emphasized the threads of premature grey that had already been prominent when I had turned him in the year 1191. At times like this I had to remind myself that in human years, Alec was twelve years older than I had been at my turning. As vampire, he still looked the same as he had that night I found him close to death on a crusader battlefield.

I sat back further in the conference room chair I had occupied for the past two hours while we discussed what he knew about the conspirators. He had confidently given me his suggestions for what he would like to do as his part of the final attack plan.

In his still noticeable soft Dublin brogue, he said, "I'd like to meet with you as soon as you're back in Shreveport."

"Good idea. There's plenty of room at the guesthouse on my property." I smiled as I saw Pam pass behind Alec and wave, her image in the webcam a welcome sight. "How long can you stay?"

"My area is secure, for now, and I have a well-trained group of managers. I could use at least one week's vacation away from all this snow, if you don't mind my sire," and he bowed his head respectfully.

Smiling nostalgically, I answered, "It's been too long since I had both my children with me. I should be done here in a week to ten days."

"Tell my grandfather to stop working you so hard. You're not getting any younger, Viking."

"Just what I need, another disrespectful child."

Through our warm laughter, Alec gave me details of Pam's return flight next week then we ended our session. Turning toward the doorway that led to the office, I smiled at Gaston who had been standing there listening. His light olive complexion with its cast of vampire whiteness stood out in the now-silent monitor's brightness.

Seeing the oddly limpid look in his eyes, I commented, "It has been a very long time since _you_ saw your grandchildren, my father."

"Too long. When this nightmare is over, I expect you to bring your wife and my two grandchildren for an extended visit. We will make it a grand holiday with visits to Milan and London along with Paris to peruse the season's fashion offerings for all of us, and to scour the auction houses. I am looking forward to showing Sookie the sights and telling her all the history I have seen. Perhaps in the spring or summer when the gardens are in full bloom?"

"I will begin planning our visit as soon as we are free to do so," I answered with a hopeful smile.

Gaston moved beside me, and reached into the pocket of his herringbone blazer. "I have a special gift for your mate. A piece of jewelry I acquired on my last visit to see Louis at Versailles in 1685. It was made by the court jeweler for the king's second wife, Madame de Maintenon."

He took my hand and placed a yellow gold pendant in a spectacular sunburst design in my palm. A flawless teardrop-shaped emerald was at the center of the sunburst with sparkling amethysts and creamy white seed pearls adorning the rays and the drop threads that were suspended from three points of the design. I let its long gold chain studded with perfectly matched diamonds and more amethysts hang down, admiring the full opulence of the piece.

"It is exquisite, Gaston. Why would a queen reject something so beautiful?"

"She loathed emeralds. They reminded her of Louis' rule of Navarre." Shrugging, he continued, "Will Sookie like my gift?"

"My sweet, little country girl will be overwhelmed. Her tastes have always been very simple. This is truly worthy of her beauty." I let out a joyous laugh picturing the expression on my beloved's face when I presented her with my adopted sire's gift.

The ancient vampire became even more animated at my reaction. "It is such a delight to hear you laugh, my Eric, and to see how easily you smile now. I can feel the enormous love and joy of life that your precious wife has brought to you."

As I opened my mouth to speak, I felt a deep slicing agony in my chest just below my right nipple. I knew immediately something had happened to my beloved. Before I could explain what I was feeling to Gaston, the pain peaked and I crashed to the wooden floor. A second later there was only blackness.

* * *

The chaos that had engulfed the Denver medical center trauma facility ended when emergency vehicles finished depositing casualties from the multi-car pileup on I-70. Hospital personnel were still scrambling around the floors treating the dozens of injured and dealing with their distraught relatives and friends.

It had taken almost two hours for the rescue personnel to extricate them from Quinn's smashed SUV. Miraculously, he had suffered only minor cuts, abrasions and bruises. Sookie hadn't been so lucky. Desperate to help her, he'd pushed his weretiger strength to its limit. First he struggled to get close enough to her in the cramped quarters to find out how badly she was hurt then attempted to staunch the flow of blood from a jagged piece of glass embedded in her chest just below her right breast. Luckily, her suitcase was in the back seat. Each time he thought he had the bleeding under control it would start again. He'd used up almost every piece of clothing she'd brought with her before her wound finally responded to the makeshift pressure bandages he'd made.

All the while he'd been treating Sookie, he'd heard the muffled ring of her cell phone sound repeatedly. He'd found her purse wedged under her body. Clicking open the phone, he'd said hello then heard a very enraged vampire shouting at him. Knowing how intolerant Eric Northman was, and how distraught he must have been about his wife, Quinn had quickly and precisely given him the facts of their accident. With minimal discussion, Eric told him he'd be on a plane to Denver immediately, and to keep him informed by phone then he hung up.

Knowing he had to do something more to help her, Quinn made sure her injury was still under control then began working on the jammed door on Sookie's side. Inch by inch his powerful hands moved the twisted metal enough so that he was able to get a solid grip. With all the strength he was capable of in his human form, he pushed with his shoulder and upper body until the hinges gave way and he was able to climb out onto the road. Frantically, he began shouting for the emergency personnel several yards away to bring medical help. One of the EMTs came running.

It took a while before they could get an ambulance close enough. Once they did and Sookie was loaded in the vehicle, he got in with her. There was no way he was going to desert her this time. He watched quietly as the two medics worked in tandem to treat her. All through the ride to the hospital his anger, fear and love for her twisted his insides. Deep down he knew that her action in grabbing the wheel and moving his Explorer over before the chain reaction collision reached them very probably saved his life.

Quinn got up from his seat in the overcrowded waiting area as he saw the emergency room resident who was in charge of Sookie's case coming out of the treatment room. Noting the extensive patches of blood on the doctor's blue scrubs, he was in front of the man in seconds.

"How is Mrs. Northman?"

"She's stable for now. We'll be taking her up to surgery as soon as a room is available. You said her husband is in Europe?"

"I've talked to him by phone. He's already on his way."

"He may not be in time."

Grabbing the doctor's arm, Quinn squeezed, ignoring how powerful his weretiger strength was. "What do you mean?"

The doctor didn't react to the unusual pressure on his arm. "She's lost a great deal of blood. We're pumping it in as fast as we can but she keeps losing it. We may be in trouble if we can't get the bleeding under control soon. She's O positive so that's even more of a problem. With all the casualties from the crash, the city's blood bank stock is almost depleted. We have a call out for donors."

"I'm O positive. Where do I go to donate for her?"

The doctor asked a passing nurse to show him where to go to donate blood then hurried back into the treatment room. As he followed the nurse, Quinn's weretiger anger notched up further that all he could do to help the woman he still loved was this.

* * *

Thanks to Quinn, I knew exactly where to go in this multi-floored hospital complex to find my beloved. Two of my vampire abilities, swiftness and glamouring, had come in very handy as I made my way into the building and up to the intensive care floor where Sookie's room was located.

The nurse's station was empty as I whisked down the hall and into her room. Closing the door behind me, I made sure it was locked. What I needed to do required total privacy in this human hospital.

My wife was lying in the white-sheeted bed so covered in tubes and wires, her pale body looked lost. From the moment I'd awakened on the conference room floor, I had been in total agony being completely cut off from the blood bond Sookie and I had forged over the past year, petrified that the disconnection meant she had died. The conversations with Quinn assuring me that she was alive though badly injured kept me from losing myself in grief. All through the plane trip, I was in continuous physical pain from the lack of her emotions touching my mind and body. Her dangerously flickering life force intensified my growing despair. As I looked at her, the harsh emptiness of our barricaded bond gripped me even more than it had over the forlorn hours it had taken to travel from France.

Very carefully, I lifted her body and moved my body onto the bed so that I was supporting her fragile weight. "Sookie," I called softly and urgently.

When there was no response, I sank my fangs into my arm and pressed it to her mouth, hoping the smell of my blood would get through to her. At first there was no reaction, so I rubbed my blood gently into her lips. Slowly, then with a growing recognition, my beloved nuzzled then licked. With increasing energy, her eyes fluttered and opened fully. Exhaling a deep sigh when she saw my face, her mouth grabbed onto my arm and began to suck heavily.

It had been a year since I had fed her out of dire necessity. There was always a chance that too much of my vampire blood could turn her. Neither of us wanted that yet, but for now, I had to take the risk.

In the quiet room as the minutes slipped by, I had to repeat opening my skin to feed her twice. I was relieved as I felt my blood steadily healing the damage from the accident and from the surgery. Gradually, Sookie's skin was growing pink and healthy again. Her body movements strengthened and she cuddled into my chest.

"Please, Eric. Get all this hospital stuff off me so you can really hold me. I've missed you so much, my husband."

"Hold still," I said. I stood up and began moving around the bed, taking out needles from her arms. Lying beside her again, I opened my arms and drew her into me. Her arms and legs wasted no time in wrapping around my body.

"I want to go home, Eric," she whispered against my light jacket.

"Alcide has arranged with the High Country pack here in Denver for an ambulance to take us to the airport where a plane is waiting. We need to move fast so we're not stopped. Do you feel strong enough for me to carry you to the ambulance bay?"

"Yes, please."

With my beloved wife wrapped in a blanket in my arms, I reversed my previous trip along the hall, glamouring the nurse who was back at her station, and hurried down the multiple flights of stairs. Just as we arrived at the ambulance entrance, two EMTs wheeled a stretcher up to the automatic doors. A security guard who had been drinking coffee at the admissions desk went up to them as they wheeled the stretcher into the corridor. I could hear the escalating argument as the guard questioned the two Weres.

Knowing the quickest way to end this confrontation and delay, I whisked close to the guard and bared my fangs. Startled, he jumped back.

The older Were grabbed his arm as the guard recovered from his shock and started toward me. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. They're blood-bonded mates. If you try to take her away from him, the vampire will kill you."

With a sharp blink from my heavy glamour, the guard moved back allowing the Weres to bring the stretcher forward. Gently, I laid Sookie on it. Only when we were safely outside and Sookie was being loaded into the ambulance did I retract my fangs.

Kneeling on the floor of the swiftly moving vehicle, I held my wife's hand firmly in mine. My blood coursing strongly through her veins, her mind reached out to me with an intense stream of love. "We will be home very soon, beloved. Then you can feed again so you will be fully recovered in no time."

"I'm so sorry, Eric," she said in a very tiny voice.

"For what, dearest?"

"For being the old high maintenance Sookie again," and a tear slid out of the corner of one eye.

I knew my woman's concern for me needed a simple, tender response. While she had been wrapped up in the dangers I was facing, neither of us had considered one of those freak uncontrollable events that the universe delighted in dumping on Earth's creatures indiscriminately. Lovingly touching her face, I told her, "If you were invincible, my lover, I would have no function in your life."

She smiled up at me weakly. "I could use a smooch, Viking."

Leaning over her, I pressed my lips firmly into hers, letting the warmth of her very alive breath seep through me. Sighing again, she closed her eyes and fell asleep. I brought her hand to my lips allowing a series of slow red tears to fall onto her skin. If I had lost her…

* * *

Feeling safe and totally loved in Eric's arms, I'd slept for the entire trip back to Shreveport. Rasul was waiting at the airport with the Range Rover. Eric carried me to his newest toy that he hadn't even had a chance to drive yet. Rasul held me while Eric climbed in the back seat then gave me to my husband so I could stretch out comfortably. Again, the sleep fairy claimed me.

Snug on our double-king teak platform bed, I let Eric get me out of that awful hospital gown. I took advantage of being undressed to check out my body, hoping that whatever new scars this misadventure left wouldn't be too bad. Facing the cheval mirror, I had Eric peel away the heavy bandage that had been put under my right breast after the surgery. I frowned at the big brown stain of antiseptic then carefully touched where the horrible pain had been. I knew I should take a shower but I was just too tired.

My eyes shifted to Eric's reflection in the mirror. He was smiling, relieved that there were only thin red lines where the glass and stitches had marred my skin. We both knew with more feedings of his super blood, the marks would fade to nothing. As he slipped a pale yellow silk nightgown with spaghetti straps over my head, I whispered into his ear, "Thank you."

Without a word, he went into our bathroom. He returned with one of the super soft chartreuse hand towels and covered my chest preparing to feed me again. Making himself comfortable, he had me lean back against his bare chest and bit into his arm. The first time my Viking had done this for me was after I'd been staked at Club Dead. The intimacy each time was very nice but not the reasons for the feedings. This time I drank from him slowly, letting his powerful emotions surround me as his blood nourished my body.

"Now that you're safely home again, I thought you might like to recuperate in Bon Temps. We can sleep through the rest of tonight then drive there at sunset."

I felt the very natural beginnings of an erection on my man's body against my back then it subsided.

"I apologize, dear one. At this moment, it is very difficult for me to give you my blood yet control my desire. I want you, my beloved. I always want you."

Since it was already Sunday morning and dawn would be coming soon, I let go of Eric's arm, licked my lips and looked up at him. "I'll convalesce in Bon Temps on two conditions."

Kissing me on the forehead, he laughed, "Two this time?"

"I'm entitled after my accident," I pouted.

"You most certainly are entitled to be pampered, Mrs. Northman."

"First, I want another great ride in the Range Rover," I grinned.

"That is easily arranged."

I took one last pull on Eric's closing fang marks then very seriously added, "I want you to keep your promise."

My husband's body tensed very noticeably. "You mean about making our baby the next time we're in Bon Temps?"

"Yes."

Carefully wiping my mouth of a smear of his blood, his voice went into Northman practical mode, "It might be best if we wait until the time after this when you are fully recovered. My blood has healed you quite nicely, but I would prefer that we not take any risks. Niall's gift is beyond price and cannot be recreated. We will have only one opportunity to make our child."

Turning fully around so I could look into his beautiful, loving eyes, I felt vestiges of the fear and pain he'd suffered over the past hours. I smiled tenderly. "You're right. There's no expiration date on fairy magic."

Pulling myself up, I wrapped my arms around Eric's neck and kissed him deeply. His return embrace was tentative at first then his emotional dam broke and he held onto me for dare life.

* * *

Grinning like a stuffed pig, I rubbed my very full belly. "Stephanie, your Waldorf chicken salad was fabulous. If everything you cook is this good, my brother is going to get fat."

At the sink where Jason and his new lady were just finishing up with the lunch dishes, they both laughed. "Steph is as good a cook as you are, sis. And I'm _never_ going to get fat. It's all muscle. See," Jason said emphatically. He came over to the kitchen table and flexed his arm so I could squeeze it.

I obliged him then punched him in the bicep. To my surprise, my usually undemonstrative (WOTD for January 15h) brother wrapped one arm around my shoulders and pressed my upper body against his. "You scared the shit out of me, Sookie. Don't _ever_ do that again!"

As Stephanie sat back down, I stuck my tongue out at Jason. "I'll do my best to stay away from traffic accidents, big brother."

He looked at his watch and whistled. "Hate to eat and run, but the road crew is waiting." Leaning down he gave me a big kiss (also not my brother's usual modus operandi, a phrase I picked up from my years of mystery novel reading) then hugged and kissed Stephanie. "Later," and he was out the back door. The county pickup he drove exploded out my driveway in a screech of wheels and crunching gravel.

I heard Stephanie sigh then she turned back to me. "So, how are things going with you and Jason? He seems to be taking it in stride that you're three-quarters fairy."

Her sparkling blue eyes just beamed as she answered, "I was really nervous about our conversation after the party at Merlotte's, but Jason took it all in like a trooper. The really funny part was when I took off my prosthetic ears and showed him my pointed fairy ears he was in awe. His eyes widened then he asked my permission to touch them."

Cautiously, I asked, "Did you let him?"

"Oh, yes. Now every time we're together he runs his fingers along the ridges so slowly and lovingly it almost makes me come."

The shiver that went through her body was the sexual kind, not the "I'm cold" kind. "Mind if I ask a very personal question?"

To my surprise, her answer was very direct and mature. "No, we haven't slept together yet. Jason feels our relationship is too new and wants us to get to know each other better before we take that plunge. It's only been ten days since we met."

"Are you sure this Jason is the real one and not a doppelganger?"

"He's the real Jason. I can tell. When we touch now, the fairy glow of our heritage takes over and infuses both of us."

My shock at the openness my brother's new love was showing me was matched by my equal curiosity about just how much fairy magic she possessed. My conversation with Claude had left some major holes in my knowledge about my fae heritage.

"Besides the ears and the glowy thing, what other traits did you inherit from your fairy side?"

"Well, I don't have the scent problem like full fairies which is why I was able to be around your Eric and the other vamps the night of the party. I can't dematerialize, most of the time anyway. Once in a while I can do it if I really work at it. Jason loves that idea and wants to see me do it. I'm holding off, until we know each other better," she laughed heartily.

I decided to jump in and confide in this lovely woman. I knew in my very hopeful heart that she and Jason would marry someday soon, and I wanted to make her my friend as well as my sister-in-law. "It wasn't until I got involved with the supe world that I found out about my fairy genes. Recently, I discovered that I have a long-dormant streak of magical power. My cousin Claude thinks it's not just fae, but something unique because of my supernatural blood bond with Eric."

"How deep is your bond with Eric?"

"It's so strong, we were able to feel each other's emotions while he was in Europe and I was here. From what he's told me, a vampire blood bond is never _that_ powerful. That's the good part of my gift, the increase in our love connection especially with sex. I haven't told Eric yet but I think my special power is what saved my life and the life of the person who was in the car with me. I sensed the danger coming just before we were hit."

"Hmm. Heightened sexuality and precognition. Those are usually traits that come with being from earth clans like mine. Because of our ties to the basics of creation both are very strong in us. I suspect they have manifested in you even though you're of the Sky People _because_ of your intimate blood connection to Eric. You can't get much earthier than a magically animated vampire. Would you mind if I try a meld with you? Maybe I can give you some direction that Claude couldn't."

"Oh, please. What do you want me to do?"

"Just hold out your arms on the table palms up."

I did as instructed. Stephanie carefully wrapped her hands around the inside of each arm resting her arms on time of mine. Gradually, a radiant smile suffused her face. I felt a pleasant warmth begin to seep from her skin into mine. It crept along my nerve endings from my hands, up my arms and began suffusing down my whole body. When it reached my toes, the glow emerged like an opening flower in time-lapse photography.

Stephanie's bell-like voice rang through the quiet room. "Oh, my!" and a rapturous expression spread across her face.

I held very still sensing a flood of supernatural visions coursing from her body into mine. My heart overflowed with such joy and love and hope at each flash of what appeared to be my future. Though I was having trouble keeping up with the swiftly moving images, I could feel that they were all the good things that had been in very short supply in my life. Best of all, I wasn't alone in all the happiness. Eric was right there with me.

The stark glow began to fade and finally went out. Stephanie took a deep, cleansing breath, released her hold on me and smiled excitedly. "Congratulations!"

I blinked in confusion. "For what?"

"For the two beautiful babies you and Eric will have before year's end!"

Sentence after sentence ran through my head in seconds until I finally settled on one. "It's true Niall gave us a magical gift that will allow us to conceive a child that is both Eric's and mine. But we've decided to wait a little longer because of my injuries."

"No, you can't! You're ovulating now and will be able to conceive the twins I saw in the visions today. If you wait, your son and daughter will never come to be!"

The idea of Eric and me becoming the parents of twins was such a shock, all I could stammer was, "Are you sure, Stephanie?"

"I am fairy of the earth. I could never lie about something like this. I would be cursed for eternity if you and those babies came to any harm."

Reaching out, I grabbed hold of her hands. "I believe you. Thank you so much, for the visions, and for the encouragement you've given me."

We chatted for several more minutes then Stephanie had to leave to get back to the daycare center. As I watched her drive away in her silver minivan, I began formulating my conversation with Eric to convince him I wasn't just a crazy one-eighth fairy when I told him we _had_ to make me pregnant tonight. It was going to be a tough sell emotionally for him. My Viking was still reeling from what had happened on our honeymoon and from all the bad news he'd been given in France. I knew he was raw, my near escape in Denver being the last straw. He was hiding it damn well, but it was there.

I hoped and prayed that I could convince him that the babies Stephanie had predicted for us would be worth any risk just as our being together as blood-bonded mates and human spouses was right and true.

* * *

I'd been on pins and needles since the sun went down and I heard the shower running in our bedroom. Keeping myself as quiet as possible, I strained my ears to hear Eric's every movement now that he was awake. Starting to feel a touch of asphyxia, I noticed I was barely breathing. Too late I realized I should have been sitting in the armchair facing the hallway instead of on the couch. My thousand-year-old Viking vampire husband was suddenly leaning over my shoulder snuggling my neck in a very hungry kiss. With a lick and a quiet laugh at my jump of surprise, Eric went into the kitchen.

Mumbling under my breath at his vampire skill of walking so quietly, I followed him. He had taken a bottle of TrueBlood out of the frig and was microwaving it.

When the microwave dinged, he opened the door and took the bottle out. With his thumb he flipped the cap into the sink, took a long swallow and grinned at me. "Did I startle you, dearest?"

I was about to make one of my smart aleck Stackhouse retorts when I took a close look at what my man was wearing. My jeans-and-tee guy was freshly poured into an outfit I'd never seen before, and boy did he look hot! A body hugging long sleeve cashmere Henley shirt in a rich burgundy color encased every inch of Eric's delicious arms, shoulders and torso. As if that look wasn't sexy enough, the bottom of the new shirt was very snugly tucked into the waistband of a pair of fawn-colored cargo pants that made the magnificent curves of his thighs and butt irresistible along with the always present swell of his very generous gracious plenty.

Finally getting my brain and my mouth in synch, I asked, "When did you get those new duds?"

Grinning even wider, he sat at the kitchen table, his TrueBlood held loosely between his big hands. "Since you're "borrowing" my T-shirts as your latest form of night ware, I decided I needed a new look. What do you think?"

"You are so hot, vampire, I want to ravish you right here and now."

"I see your latest feeding from me has escalated your recovery even further," he smirked.

Thinking deviously, I turned Eric's teasing to my advantage. "Yes, it has. I feel so restored to my full healthy self, I don't see any reason not to have sex with you. In fact, my body is so perfect from all your super vampire blood, I want us to make our baby tonight."

The smirk faded into a look composed of panic, betrayal and suppressed anger. "You ambushed me, Sookie. I believed the trust between us was stronger than that."

Confidently, I stood in front of my husband and cupped my hands on his cheeks. My thumbs moved in a soothing rhythm on his pale skin. "It is, Eric. Our trust also works both ways. When Stephanie was here today, she gave me a wondrous revelation and insight about my gift and our future. Tonight is our night to use Niall's gift to conceive not one but two babies."

The mixture of emotions I could feel as they flashed across Eric's face was amazing especially the totally alien flicker of confusion that was shaking his ancient self-assurance. I prayed even harder that he would understand and accept what I'd told him and not reject it out of fear for my life. When he finally spoke, I couldn't have been more surprised.

"This is what my adopted sire meant," he whispered in delight and relief.

Anxiously, I leaned closer against Eric and asked, "What did he say?"

He pushed his chair back and pulled me down onto his lap. "He told me I would live through this war because my beloved, meaning you, and my children would need me in the years ahead. I assumed he meant Alec and Pam. You see, Gaston's gift of prophecy only allows him to see alternate versions of the past. I thought he made the prediction about the future only because he knew it was what I needed to hear at that moment."

"He's never, ever been able to predict the future?"

"No, never."

I wasn't sure if it was my magic supe power or because _I_ wanted to believe so much, I beamed at Eric and said, "Maybe he's developed a new gift."

"Maybe."

Without another word, Eric picked me up, carried me into our bedroom and laid me ever so gently on our bed. He took the carved and inlaid rosewood box out of the dresser drawer where I'd put it for safekeeping and lifted the lid. I took the precious receptacle out of its nest of white velvet and pressed it to my breasts.

The directions for use Niall had given us were very simple. With slow, leisurely movements of hands, lips and limbs culminating in the explosive merging of male and female genitalia, we fertilized the magically prepared fecund ground of my womb for our two babies to be created and to grow inside my body.


	9. Chapter 9

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 9

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice-The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2010 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: This part of my story turned out much longer than expected. In order to showcase the last four scenes of the finale, I'm extending "New Year's Resolutions" to Chapter 10. I plan to have it done and posted by New Year's Eve.

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 9

Humans aren't the only sentient beings who are creatures of habit. My daily musings at Vespers as soon as I rose each evening had always been a source of comfort to me no matter where on this earth I had found myself. Tonight certain sentient ones who are dear to me were the focus of my mind and silent heart. Instead of my usual simple musings about my years as a vampire, I had engaged in serious prayers appropriate to the consecrated priest I once was. I hadn't needed to refer to the modern English breviary on its little shelf below where my elbows rested on the kneeler. Concentrating on my very old Latin breviary in its glass-protected case on the alter, I knew exactly which psalms and gospel fit my world as it existed this night.

A fresh gust of wind howled outside spraying loose snow from the earlier storm across the stained glass window above the small alter in my home chapel. The sound wasn't so different from the blowing sand I remembered that night eight centuries ago in the desert around Arsuf. In an oddly coincidental response, the candle flames in their blue and red glass votive holders in the wrought iron stand to the right of the alter flickered. As if it were a signal, all the memories of that night came flooding back.

_The fighting had finally ended at sunset with victory for the crusaders of King Richard's army. Here and there among the dead bodies scattered along a moat east of the stronghold was an occasional soul still clinging to life. I was one of them. I had been cut down by an unknown combatant while ministering to an infidel._

_Through the narrow slits of my dying eyes I saw him standing above me. In the thick darkness he seemed to glow and pulse, the figure of a huge being I perceived as the personification of an otherworldly archangel, beautiful, powerful and young. Only when he leaned closer and spoke in perfectly accented Latin did I realize what he was._

_"Do you want to live, priest?" His deep voice was almost a command._

_To this day I don't know what motivated me to answer, "Yes." As a devout priest and believer in what my church taught, I wasn't afraid to die. But something in me wasn't ready to let go._

_The very large body covered in a billowing burnous knelt and proceeded to drain my blood. His sharp fangs at my neck were excruciatingly painful at first. Strangely, by the time he took the last of my blood, my body had become numb. Only my mind remained alert, eagerly taking the blood he offered from the puncture wounds he'd made in his arm. The sweet thickness of his vampire blood soothed my confused mind and raging body. When he disengaged his arm, I felt bereft and abandoned. I wanted to grab his bare arm but I couldn't move my limbs. As if I were a feather, he picked me up, cradling me in his arms like a babe, and began walking away from that field of death. In his powerful arms, his long, even strides eased my anxiety. I felt safe from the blackness of the desert, and slept._

_Three days later, I awoke in a deep cave, ravenously hungry and angry at myself for being such a coward about letting go of my human life. In my growing rage, I wanted to go for the creature's throat, but some compulsion stopped me. Despite the darkness of the cave, I could see his eyes glowing again. They were a deep blue, and they reassured me with their steadiness. When he offered me his arm again, I took it eagerly and began to feed. For the first time in my thirty-five years, I felt both pleasure and disgust as my body's new need betrayed my human moral code._

_All the while I fed and afterwards, the vampire's rich baritone explained my transformed state and what I could expect as the days went by. He also explained that we would be traveling by night until we reached the Mediterranean Sea where he planned to steal a boat and begin our journey back to the European mainland. From there, we would make our way to France. It all sounded so precise and logical, I didn't question his plans for us except to ask his name._

_My sire Eric set what would have been for humans a brutally fast pace out of the desert to the coast. Delighting in the first of my vampire abilities to be tested, I easily kept pace with him. We were almost equal in height, and my enhanced strength made our obvious human age difference moot. Along with the great speed, I realized all my senses had become magically heightened. The desert I had come to as a human was so much more beautiful through my vampire awareness._

_Before we took off in the small sailboat Eric had commandeered, he found a suitable human and glamoured him so I could have a good first feed of human blood. The priest in me struggled with what I had been taught was a reprehensible practice. My vampire body won that first battle. My enhanced strength was formidable but being a new vampire, I needed heavy helpings of human blood. Keeping close watch over me, Eric made sure I didn't drain the fellow. The difference between my sire's blood and the human kind registered on my transformed body immediately. My vampire side reveled in the rich warm blood like what used to run through my veins. Its sail billowing as the boat sliced through the blue water under a moonless September sky, my former human side began its war of conscience that was still with me to this day. My hunger sated, I fell asleep at the bottom of the boat even though it was night._

_Just before dawn, Eric beached the boat on another deserted stretch of sand, this time on the island of Crete. The cessation of movement wasn't what woke me. My roiling stomach that had been building during my nap let go as soon as I stepped onto land, disgorging the blood I had stolen from the helpless-to-resist human._

_Despite his almost three centuries as a vampire, Eric was confused and shocked. He didn't express his emotions in words but I could see his displeasure in the stoic set of his features. Vampires, especially newly turned ones, didn't reject human blood. It was their means of survival. His disorientation didn't last long. My sire's ingrained practicality and quick mind met my immediate need with his own blood, leaving the long-term questions and problem for later. He found shelter for us and for the boat for the daylight hours. At sunset the next night we set off on the second leg of our transit across the Mediterranean heading for the boot of Italy. Again, he quenched my ravening hunger with his own blood._

_At Calabria, we abandoned the boat and started out on foot. Alternating between running and flying (my sire's gift that still amazes me), we reached the outskirts of Rome. Again, he offered me his fang-marked arm. That time I refused. One of my traits that had made me such an affective priest was a natural empathy I used in all my service to others whether Christian or not. I could feel my sire's flagging strength and his own need to feed through his controlled pose._

_His first instinct was to protect me. He found a place I could hide while he went out to hunt. I won't pretend I suddenly became a completely converted vampire during those night hours Eric was out in the Italian countryside finding a human meal for himself. I did puzzle over why his vampire blood was acceptable to my transformed body but human blood was not. I speculated that perhaps it was my former vocation that hadn't let go of my duty to my flock._

_When Eric returned from his heavy feeding, his complexion was pinker than it had been when I'd first seen him. He moved with a firm, confident quickness that came through as we searched for a hiding place for the day. When he offered me his arm just before the sun began rising I took it gratefully. Through the waning darkness I could see his smile of satisfaction that I was accepting his gift of life._

_This same scenario was repeated in Genoa. We traveled together, talked about where our ultimate destination was and what we would do when we arrived there. Eric hunted and fed then he fed me, never making the unusual relationship that was growing between us anything other than acceptable behavior between a sire and his child._

_On the fifth night we reached Perpignan and what was at that time Gaston's small comfortable cottage. Meeting another vampire so soon after my turning surprised me. The long established image of these night creatures as solitary predators didn't fit as I was taken into the older vampire's cozy home surrounded by what looked like a sea of grapevines in the middle of nowhere in Southern France._

_Sensing my painful hunger, Gaston arranged for me to feed from a willing local woman who would also accommodate the very strong sexual lusts of a newly turned vampire that I admit I had been fighting. Celibacy was too old and comfortable a habit to overcome. My rejection of the human blood was even more violent that second time. Despite Gaston's silent but obvious objection, Eric fed me again and I slept._

_For three days, my transformed body steadily fought against the supernatural magic that was the accepted norm for a vampire. In the cool, comfortably appointed space in the hidden caverns under the house where I had been laid, my body openly rejected the blood lust and simply waited to die. Each time I slipped further into death, my sire brought me back with his blood._

_When I asked him why, he answered in that coolly controlled unemotional voice he still possessed, "You are my child, Alec. I will not let you go."_

_In the continual darkness, I lost track of time. Only when I heard the sharp voices of my sire and Gaston did I know it was night. I had slept so heavily for so long, they didn't notice I was fully conscious, listening to every angry word they exchanged._

_Gaston's ancient bass came to my ears clearly. "This turning was a mistake, my Eric. Pity is not known as a vampire trait, but use it here. Allow this too fragile one to die in peace."_

_Eric's one word answer was a resounding, "No!"_

_I felt the swift rush of air as my sire ran through the distillery to the main corridor, his footfalls echoing loudly down the escape route to the secret exit._

_The flash of movement to my bedside brought me to my feet. In Gaston's millennia-old eyes, I saw the color of grey death. With a silent prayer to the Virgin, I belatedly prepared to meet my earthly end._

Outside the wind shrieked through the tree branches of the winter bare sugar maples around the suburban city north of Toronto where I had settled more than fifty years ago. I heard a limb crack then fall into the blanket of snow in my backyard.

When I looked at my watch, over an hour had passed since I had come in here. Pam would be worried. Having spent so many decades without her after I'd emigrated to Canada with my fellow Irish on a famine ship, I sometimes forgot that she was a woman as well as a vampire. Since we had reunited, our bond had deepened making our blood connection as siblings and as lovers even stronger.

With one last entreaty to the entity I still recognized as God to bring Eric safely through the conflict that was coming to a head very soon, I crossed myself and got up from the prie-dieu.

* * *

I was used to waking up alone when I shared Alec's bed. His advanced age had given him a shorter sleep cycle than most vamps. That he used the extra time to commune with the God he had been excommunicated from serving when he was turned had become a natural extension of the vampire Father Alec Colgan was now. I had come to accept my sibling lover's continued devotion to his religion, remaining faithful to his lost station as a priest. It was his gift – to adhere to his humanity. Even after all the years, I was still puzzled by his human reconciliation to his vampire nature. Most of us didn't think like he did, seeing the divine as well as the demonic in our supernatural existence. My Protestant family had been only marginally religious, what one did to be accepted in that eighteenth century society I had come from.

Since our first meeting that beautiful spring night in Paris a century and a half ago, I knew Alec was a mass of contradictions, opposites and conflicts. A team of twenty-first century psychiatrists would have a field day analyzing and dissecting his eight hundred year old psyche. Yet he avoided any dissonance by the strength and energy he gave to his final decisions. His reasoning was oblique and indirect compared to Eric's focused and direct pragmatism. Despite their opposing methodologies, their ultimate conclusions were always in perfect synch.

In our human lives, centuries aside, Alec and I were so very different. I have always experienced a twinge of isolation from him after he had been involved in one of his religious exercises as if he was on a different plane of existence. That isolation had taken on an element of fear since his teleconference with our sire four days ago. My lover's daily devotions had increased and become more complex as a result. I had no such outlet so I attempted to find comfort and solace for my fear by increasing my physical desire for sex with him, a very typical vampire solution. Alec was primarily concerned with Eric's survival, the bond between them so much older and more complex than mine. Our sire was the leader of the entire operation and the primary target of the rebel vamps. Alec's priestly altruism made him ignore the very real danger he was in as leader of the Canadian takedown operation. Being child, sibling and lover by blood, I would be devastated if anything happened to either of them. And it could easily turn out that way.

My reflection in the front bay window glass showed a very un-vampire like female copiously blubbering, tears streaming down my cheeks, dripping off my chin onto the white knit sweater I'd put on only an hour ago. The big globs of blood were making a very unattractive random design of garish red wetness among the soft fibers around my neck and down my bosom. In human terms, Sookie would say I was a mess.

Firm cool lips and muscular arms arrived to save me from an unbecoming meltdown. "I'm so sorry, Pam. Please forgive me for forgetting that you are anxious too."

With Alec's arms circling my body and pulling me into his chest, I wiped the backs of both my hands across my cheeks. Sniffling, I said, "If you think this is bad, you should have seen the mess I made of your bed in grandfather's house after they told me you'd sailed for Canada."

Lovingly, he scraped his fangs along the right side of my neck just below my ear. "You never told me that. Why?"

"I am vampire. It's below me to try to make another vamp feel guilty," I snickered.

Laughing softly against my hair, Alec responded, "Well, you have, and I belatedly deserve it."

Turning to face him, I went for his mouth, hunger, desire and fear driving my need for him. As Alec's hands and mouth on my body showed me his own need, I laughingly asked, "Do you think your God would mind if I take possession of your vampire side for the rest of the night?"

Picking me up and starting toward the bedroom, he answered, "It's going to happen no matter who might object."

* * *

Her red-stained white sweater was part of the scattered pile of clothing Pam and I had discarded across my underground bedroom as our lovemaking progressed. It had taken this beautiful, vibrant young English vampire woman to end my almost seven hundred years of abstinence. Each time we made love, I relived the magical awakening of my vampire soul to the pleasure I had denied myself before she came into my conflicting natures. My human side had always felt guilt when I had masturbated to exorcise that inescapable aspect of my vampire lust. My rationalization was that the sin was only on my head. With Pam, there was no sin, just my vampire body performing as it should, giving her my love along with the physical pleasure. From that first time, she had been my only lover, even through the years we were separated.

At times like this I was especially grateful for the choice I made so long ago. Without it, my incredible journey would have been denied to me. Though I can no longer exercise my duties as a priest, in their place I had been able to give so much more as a vampire especially to my fellow Irish. That precious gift of my immortal life span had come from Eric and from Gaston.

Taking Pam's left hand in mine, I brought it to my lips, kissing the white gold band I had given her when she'd arrived just after New Year's Day. Interspersed within the Celtic knot scrollwork was the Gaelic phrase we had chosen to seal our love bond when we had been reunited over sixty years ago when Eric had sent her to me in Cabbagetown for safety against the growing horror of the war. We had chosen "Gra anois agus go deo" to seal our love bond. Love, now and forever was the vow we had exchanged in place of a vampire sanctioned pledging that was forbidden to us as ordinary immortals. The monarchs had their hundred year marriages, many for fatally flawed political ends as Sophie-Anne had discovered with Peter Threadgill. Some rare ones were for pure love like the one celebrated in Rhodes between Russell Edgington and Bart Crowe. Since the Great Revelation there were the increasing number of vampire/human marriages. As a sheriff, Eric was able to seal his blood bond with his beloved Sookie by a vampire pledging. I didn't envy our sire's happiness. After over a thousand years of emotional solitude, he deserved the soul mate he had finally found. I did hope that our being part of the human world now, some of the archaic vampire laws and practices would change.

Lifting her head from my chest, Pam's disheveled locks of blond hair tickled my skin as she languidly kissed her way down my naked body, making my manhood twitch again.

Looking up at me from her very strategic position at my groin with that sexually satisfied smile I had come to know so well, she said, "I don't know about you, Irishman, but I'm starved. Feed me!"

Rolling my woman over onto her side, I reveled in her nakedness pressed against me. "Get yourself dressed decently first," and I smacked her beautifully round bottom cheeks with the flat of my hand. Before she could reach for me, I whisked out of the bed, grabbed my leisure pants from the floor and hurried up the stairs to the main level of my cozy ranch-style house.

* * *

When I sensed Pam coming up the stairs, I struck a sensually inviting pose on the Black Watch plaid upholstered couch in the living room. Smiling, I held up a warmed portion of TrueBlood in a delicate Belleek porcelain mug. With a giggle, she seated herself next to me, took the mug and sipped hungrily. Settling back on the couch with her vampire breakfast, she crossed her legs, seductively revealing her nakedness underneath the magnolia pink satin robe I liked her to wear after our lovemaking sessions.

Very gently, Pam asked, "Please tell me about your prayers, my darling."

The strength of our multiple blood bonds came through in her glowing china blue eyes. Even a former priest needs a trusted confessor, and Pamela Ravenscroft was mine.

"After my conversation with Eric, I prayed for all the good and righteous vampires who will be facing death in this conflict."

Pam gave a soft chuckle. Despite her love and understanding, she couldn't help reacting to one of my moments of the old good versus evil conundrum. I took her free hand in mine and kissed the palm knowing how she would react. Her shiver of pleasure was mild but noticeable.

"Our race hasn't been at war in centuries," I continued, "with outside forces or each other. Not since the extermination of the Darkover Society. As bad as that death toll was, it was a necessity to save our kind. Stopping this conspiracy will be far worse. I fear for all of us, but especially for Eric and Gaston."

My lover emptied her mug and placed it on the small coffee table in front of the couch. Wrapping her arm around mine, she pressed close to my side. "The four of us have become a family, despite being vampires, and even more so than the human one I came from. I have blood from each of you, directly and indirectly."

I nodded solemnly. "Though Eric was the one who actually turned me, giving me his gift of immortality, it was both he and Gaston who truly gave me life. Eric refused to let me die when my changed body couldn't tolerate human blood. That night he and Gaston had argued, I was sure our adopted grandfather would end me. Instead he gave me his powerful ancient blood as he had done for our starving sire centuries before. When Eric returned that night, a heavily antlered, trussed stag across his shoulders, he hoped that the non-human creature's fresh blood would be my first meal that I could keep down. There had been no argument between them when I started to feed. There was total joy when I survived into the next night and beyond with their unique solution to my physiological problem. I was of their blood and they wanted me to live."

Tears brimming in her eyes, Pam said, "And you did survive, for them, and for me." Reaching up, she kissed me tenderly on the mouth. "I love you, Alec Colgan. Despite the barriers that sometimes come between us because of your ancient beliefs, I know, without words or actions, how important I am to you."

I kissed her back, gratefully and hungrily. "I've spent all these centuries doing my best to repay Eric and Gaston for their gifts, of blood and of you. I love you, Pamela Ravenscroft, beyond all reason, human and vampire. If my God told me to forsake you, I wouldn't, anymore than the unwritten rules of our race will ever make me give you up."

"Eric has become so much more human, like you, since he found Sookie," she mused very seriously.

Knowingly, I smiled. "That proves what I've been telling him since we said farewell in Ireland before I sailed, that he still has a soul and there is more, even for a vampire. He is a good and honorable man. What he did for me and what I've accomplished gives the lie to the blanket condemnation of evil our race has struggled with due to fear and ignorance. Are we really so different from the humans?"

With a noticeable catch in her voice, Pam whispered, "I know Eric will never sire again. Gaston has lost so many human lovers and vampire children, he clings to the three of us even though we are so far apart in miles. If only Sookie could have a child by Eric. The joy and beauty of such a precious life would keep our "family" from ending if any of us should die."

The emotions that crossed between us were so tremendous, I felt as if I were drowning in every aspect of love that had ever existed between a man and a woman. Wrapping my arms around Pam's trembling body, I began making love to her more urgently than ever before, attempting to quench her wide open fear that she had finally allowed me to feel.

Her robe pulled open, she spread her legs as I pushed my loose pants to my knees, ready to enter her. The series of sharp knocks at the front door took several seconds to penetrate the heavy lust we were engulfed in on the couch.

"Who the hell could that be at this hour?" I grumbled loudly as I fumbled to cover my full hard erection and stand up.

There are moments of alarm and confusion in life that come so suddenly, we have no choice in how we react. As soon as I looked through the peephole of the front door, my hand went into super fast mode, keying in the code that would disengage the alarm system and locks. With the grand flourish of a courtier I had learned centuries ago, I opened the door, stepped back and went to my knee.

Bowing my head deeply, I said, "Your majesty, it is an honor to have you in my home."

In an eye blink, Pam was beside me in a deep curtsey, almost to the floor. Her graceful hands were strategically crossed over her lower body keeping the pink satin from slipping away, revealing her glistening thighs. Though vampires tended to be very casual about any type of nakedness, in the presence of a monarch, modesty was the respectful thing to do.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw our surprise visitor, the Queen of Ontario, place her small hand firmly on Pam's shoulder with just enough pressure to bring my lover to a standing position.

"How delightful to see you again, Pamela. It has been far too long."

Smiling with relief at her rescue from embarrassment, Pam faced the diminutive Julia Plantagenet. "Not since the millennium celebration in Ottawa, ma'am."

"Alec," she said simply which was my signal to stand in her presence. When my eyes met hers, she smiled indulgently. "I apologize for intruding on your privacy. I would have called first but the matter at hand is far too critical to waste time." Not needing an invitation, she regally sat at the center of the couch, her knee length beige knit wrap dress falling neatly around her perfect figure.

Though only a few years older than Pam in human time, the queen was my contemporary in vampire age. Her sweet, ethereal looks had earned her many lovers and offers of marriage in Europe. Her ambition had influenced her to turn it all down. She had taken the famous royal surname when she had emigrated here in the first vampire immigrant ship that had also transplanted Sophie-Anne and Andre to the New World. Her blood was partially royal, though from the wrong side of the covers. That shortcoming had only served to make her tougher and more resilient to vampire politics. Female vampires didn't rise to queenships if they were stupid brats.

Taking on my official sheriff persona, I asked, "What is so critical and how may I assist you, your majesty?"

"Four Canadian members of the Fellowship of the Sun were hired by the family of the young woman Bill Compton beat and raped last summer to bring him to justice. They were outraged at his benign sentence from our vampire tribunal. Their form of justice requires that he be eliminated."

"When and where?"

"Our most recent intelligence report confirms that they are on their way to Bon Temps, Louisiana. We cannot allow this cross border vigilantism. Since Compton is one of Eric Northman's underlings, both of you must act in concert."

Long years of assignments for the European Consortium made my next question very natural, "What do I do with the humans if they survive?"

"You are to do your utmost to make sure _all _of them are returned to Canada for prosecution whether or not they kill Compton. The prime minister has no tolerance for hate groups no matter whom their venom is directed toward. A small contingent of RCMPs with FBI escort has already crossed into United States territory. They will be prepared to take custody of the miscreants when you and Eric have subdued them."

"You mentioned humans. Are any rogues-for-hire involved?"

"We don't know. You and Eric will need to be prepared and vigilant."

"If there _are _vampire assassins?"

"Unofficially, any vamps involved are free targets." Queen Julia took Alec's silence as assent and added, "There is a private jet fueled and ready for departure at Pearson to take you and Pamela to Shreveport."

I exchanged a look with Pam. "I'll pack," she announced and started out of the room.

"I'll call Eric." Turning to the queen, I bowed at the waist. "We will do our best, your majesty."

"I expect nothing less from you, sheriff."

With a nod, I saw her out.

* * *

The highly faceted jewels of the sunburst pendant glowed green, purple and white in the lamplight as it rested snugly between Sookie's ample breasts. Lower down on her post-coital nakedness, I continued my rapport with my son and daughter, using my fingertips and lips across the satiny skin of her lower abdomen to communicate with our children inside my woman's body.

"Have you taken one of the pregnancy tests I purchased for you, dearest?"

"Not yet, Eric. I have to wait at least another four days. It's only been two days since we used Niall's magic bullet. The babies are just two tiny globs of cells right now."

I looked up at my Sookie's sweet face and frowned. "Our son and daughter are _not _just globs of cells. They are our children, the miraculous creation of our love."

"It's _still_ too early," Sookie said in that patient tone of voice she used when she felt I was overreacting to a situation.

"Perhaps an obstetrical visit to Dr. Ludwig is in order. With her special skills, she will be able to confirm your pregnancy immediately."

"I'd prefer to go with Stephanie's earth fairy magic first. She knew I was ovulating. She'll know if my eggs and your sperm did their happy dance successfully."

"It is your choice, of course, dear one." Arching an eyebrow, I asked, "You will call her tonight?"

"Yes, my master."

I ignored the sarcasm and went back to kissing her soft, sweet skin that smelled so wonderfully of the sex we had enjoyed earlier. In response, I felt Sookie's belly move with one of her internal laughs. Scraping my slightly lowered fangs across her belly button, I asked, "Have you thought of any names yet? Along with several books on pregnancy, Lamaze, breastfeeding and other relevant topics, I ordered a baby-naming book from . I requested overnight delivery so the package should be here tomorrow."

The comfortable nest I had made of my wife's body took a major shift away from my reach. Sitting up, Sookie eyed me curiously where my nude body was sprawled on the four-poster bed.

"Eric, I'm the one who's supposed to be doing the obsessive nesting routine, not you."

"And why can I not do my own share of nesting?" I asked deeply offended. "I am the father. It is my duty and responsibility to take care of you and these two babies from the moment of their conception until they are mature adults capable of living their own lives." I waited for a verbal response but all I saw was my mate's mouth hanging open. I continued, "Despite my daytime limitations, I intend to be a full time parent to each of them. I will be with you throughout your labor and delivery and will bond with them at every opportunity from the moment of their birth. I am especially looking forward to giving them their night feedings so that you may have some rest during their first weeks of life."

With one of her glorious smiles, Sookie leaned forward and kissed me lingeringly on the mouth. "I'd like to name our daughter Adele for my Gran. Adie for short that was her family nickname. Any ideas for a boy's name?"

"I suspect our son will take after me physically. A big male should have a strong, powerful name yet something simple. Tor would be a good Norse name for him, yes?" I smiled proudly.

"The mythical god of thunder. Tor and Adele. I like that combination of names. As for the night feedings, you're going to have a problem with that one since I plan to breastfeed."

"There are excellent breast pumps and artificial nipples that are very close to the real ones. Although, your luscious nipples are irreplaceable." I made quick work of first one breast and then the other, sucking so deeply, each of Sookie's nipples stood out hard and full and hotly pink.

Groaning, she said, "You keep that up I'm going to attack you again."

"Do you believe I would ever say no, lover?"

Without any words, our bodies sorted out on the bed until we were front to front, our arms and legs merged again, in escalating thrusts that brought on another powerful release for us.

* * *

My mate held closely against my body after our latest lovemaking, my hand resumed its tender caresses over her lower abdomen.

Moving her head back from where it rested against my neck and shoulder, Sookie stared deeply into my eyes. "I want a very big favor, baby."

"Anything for you," I answered with total trust in my mate.

"Quinn was kind enough to retrieve my wedding ring and dreamcatcher from the hospital and send it back to me along with my purse. I'd like you to consider lifting his banishment from Area Five."

Before I could respond, my wife went into one of her quick-talking modes, determined to convince me I should do as she asked. "It's not just Quinn I'm asking for. His partner, Max Swaine, the one I met recently, is in love with Quinn's sister Frannie. Because they had to exchange territories, Max and Frannie have been separated for over a year. If you let Quinn have access to the whole of his old southern territory again, Max can go back to Denver and be with Frannie so he can officially court her."

Meeting her eyes, I lifted her left hand and kissed the wedding ring I had placed there less than a month ago. With a loving smile, I answered, "I already have lifted Quinn's exile. It is his reward for much more than returning your possessions. The High Country packmaster told Alcide the weretiger risked his own safety to extricate himself from his smashed car in order to get you medical aid. His actions at the accident scene and at the hospital where he donated his own blood very probably saved your life. I informed de Castro and asked him to pass the rescind order on to the King of Colorado."

"I didn't know all that. Thank you," and she hugged me tightly.

"Quinn took care of you out of love. Giving him back what he had before is the least I can do to repay him"

There was a slight note of apprehension in Sookie's voice when she asked, "It won't bother you that he'll be around again? We're bound to run into him at Special Events occasions now that all the supe groups are out and about. You've always been so possessive and jealous."

I couldn't help a soft laugh. "I know it's very sexist of me, but these babies make you so completely mine there isn't room in your heart for another man."

This time I earned a very big kiss with plenty of tongue. "You are a truly honorable man, Eric Northman."

"Yes, I am," I said with a haughty smirk.

"You're also modest, humble, unpretentious, self-effacing. Shall I go on with your list of virtues my Viking vampire husband?"

With a mischievous grin on my face, I crawled down her body and covered her clit with my mouth, using my tongue and extended fangs to bring my lover's already primed body to another climax. Easing my wet mouth away from her still throbbing womanhood, I looked up at her rapturously happy face. "I am all of those things and more. That's why you adore me so completely, my lover."

Before I could resume my comfortable position beside my woman, my cell phone that I had left on the bedside table rang with the notes of our wedding song. Noting that it was just after seven in the evening, I was prepared for a call from Rasul about a problem at Fangtasia.

"Yes?" With quick, concise sentences, my eldest child, Alec, gave me all the facts about a group of human assassins who were on their way to kill Bill Compton.

I felt Sookie's anxiety rise as she sensed my growing disquiet. Without my asking, she took hold of my left hand entwining her small fingers around mine, squeezing my wedding ring tensely.

"When will your flight arrive in Shreveport?" I asked Alec. After several more beats of listening, I responded, "Call me as soon as you know. I will pick you and Pam up at the airport." A few more words and we mutually broke the connection.

Sookie pressed close to me on the bed. "Tell me what's wrong, Eric?"

As we dressed, I gave Sookie a synopsis of what Alec had told me. Despite my very male urge to protect my pregnant wife, she needed to know the danger and be prepared for what this night might bring.

"I want you to call Stephanie and ask her to come over with your brother. You should fully explain what's about to happen. I don't want you alone in this house with Fellowship assassins on their way. When we're back from Shreveport, Pam will take over guarding you."

To my surprise, my beloved avoided commenting on the threat to Bill Compton. I did feel her valiant effort to suppress her emotions through our bond. As she used the cordless phone in the kitchen to make her call, I wrapped my arms around her waist from behind and lovingly kissed the top of her head. Twenty minutes later, Stephanie and Jason were at our door, my brother-in-law gripping his Benelli shotgun.

A half hour later I was in the Range Rover headed for Shreveport, a deep smile on my face. Stephanie had confirmed that Sookie was very definitely pregnant with two quickly growing babies, a boy and a girl.


	10. Chapter 10

Title: Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions – Chapter 10

Author: Marianne H. Stillie

Categories: Drama, Hurt/Comfort, Romance, POV

Rating: T

Pairing: Eric and Sookie

Sequel To: The Gift; Winter Solstice-The Wedding

Summary: Sometimes a honeymoon can be dangerous.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters and places for Southern Vampire Mysteries Sookie Stackhouse Novels are the property of Charlaine Harris, Ace Books, The Berkley Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Group. This piece of fan fiction was created for entertainment, not monetary purposes and no infringement on copyrights or trademarks are intended. Previously unrecognized characters, places and this story are copyrighted to the author. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Archive: Please do not archive anywhere without the author's permission.

Copyright (c) 2011 Marianne H. Stillie

Author's Note: The last scene I had originally planned for this final chapter didn't fit. Instead it will become the first scene for the next part of my Eric and Sookie saga "Changing Times".

I want to thank everyone who read this story and the first two. A very special thank you goes out to those of you who took the time to send me a review along with those who thought enough of my work to add my stories and/or my name to your favorites lists. You are the best!

Mar

* * *

Winter Solstice – New Year's Resolutions

Chapter 10

The section of bookcase slid behind the false wall in my home office revealing the cache of weapons I had accumulated over the years. After Sookie moved in, I had shown her my armament vault so she would know where to go if she needed something to fight with. She had made all the appropriate comments solemnly, thanked me for my concern then walked out of my office grumbling about someone named Duncan McCloud. When Pam told me who he was and gave me details about the television show, I purchased all six seasons of "The Highlander" from , hoping they would be as amusing as Sookie's "Buffy" DVDs. As my wife would say, they were a hoot, the pyrotechnics and swordplay much more fun than the stories.

Carefully choosing the weapons I felt Alec and I would need to confront the Fellowship hit squad, I included a barbed Australian hardwood stake in my arm sheath, like the one that had saved my life on that Canadian mountain on New Year's Eve. I didn't believe in luck so I never foolishly took my safety for granted. If another rogue vampire assassin showed up, I would be prepared.

From the doorway where he was comfortably leaning against the doorjamb, Alec said, "You are the perfect politician, sheriff, championing peace yet always prepared for war."

"That's why I'm still alive after eleven hundred years." Picking up my newest acquisition, I tossed it to Alec.

Catching the device in his left hand, he examined the workmanship of the mini-crossbow, benign without the hardwood arrow that made it exceptionally lethal to vampires as well as humans. "Nice design. Your idea?"

"Yes. I have a private source that does special work for me."

Alec stood beside my heavily laden desk. "The Arms of Northman," he joked. Picking up the carefully wrapped leather case of arrows, he asked, "May I?"

I nodded. He notched a perfectly carved piece of wood into the crossbow mechanism, hefted it and aimed expertly. Having lived through the Middle Ages when full-sized versions were in common use, we had both become experts.

"Nice balance."

I smiled at my eldest child. "For an ex-priest, you've always been a dangerous fighter."

"I had to be against the Sasanach."

Despite his pacifism, Alec had returned to Ireland numerous times over the centuries, taking up residence in different parts of the country to help his fellow Irish. Under the cover of changing identities including that of a lay brother, he fought against the escalating abuses of the British, stealing food, medicines and, when necessary, weapons. He even arranged several jailbreaks. "What was the highest price the lobsterbacks put on your multiple-identity head?"

Tucking the crossbow and pouch of arrows into the largest pocket of his utility vest, he grinned. "In pounds sterling? A great deal. I lost track once I landed at Grosse Isle, Quebec."

We began arming ourselves from the assortment of bladed weapons on the desk.

"Perfect fit on the combat uniform and camouflage. Another of your multifaceted businesses?"

This time I grinned. "I even remembered your shoe size for those hiking boots to protect your long, skinny feet." I tossed him a pair of specially designed gloves to cover his vampire skin when handling silver nets and chains. Alec raised a questioning eyebrow. "Sigebert taught me a very painful lesson after the Nevada takeover," I explained.

Slipping on the insulated, highly flexible gloves, Alec nodded toward my weapons closet. "I see you still have the katana sword you brought back from your diplomatic mission to Japan in 1637."

The samurai weapon he referred to was prominently displayed on the back wall of my secret compartment, a spotlight shining on the metal of its perfect workmanship. "It's an exquisite reminder that I just barely got away from those samurai vampires with my head after the Shimbara Rebellion."

Restraining his perverse Celtic humor, Alec said, "Gaston knew you were the only EC envoy who could make it back if there was trouble."

"And I thanked him for the honor by beating his ancient ass in a night-long fencing match. He didn't speak to me for a month."

For a brief instant, I gave in to a wave of nostalgia, recalling the last time Alec and I had fought together in the Morea expedition of 1828-29 with the French. Gaston had volunteered us to help in that last phase of the Greek's war for independence from the Ottoman Empire.

Alec must have been following my train of thought and became very serious. "Our patriarch's decision to send us to Greece was personal, not part of his duty as Consul General."

Putting down the long knife I was about to slip into my thigh sheath, I narrowed my eyes suspiciously. "What do you know that I don't?"

"During one of our more contentious debates, Gaston lost control in his diatribe and used a string of classic ancient Greek, perfectly pronounced and grammatically correct. I remembered what I'd learned in seminary so I did some research. In the thirteenth century BC there was a small highly secret cult loosely connected to Delphi. A vampire scholar has speculated that they were of our race."

"And Gaston was one of them."

"He was very probably their leader."

"It would not surprise me. I have always sensed an aura of mystery about him beyond our vampire magic." Closing my eyes, I made a mental return to my first sight of my savior. His perfectly chiseled features, almost black hair and the waves of power I felt rolling off him had petrified me in my weakened state. Only when he held my look with his hypnotic kaleidoscope eyes did my fear subside.

Shaking off the grim past, I returned to the here and now. As Alec and I resumed arming ourselves, I smiled at a lighter memory. "Gaston's manner of celebrating our return was quite raucous and lengthy. Too bad you only enjoyed part of it."

"You and my adopted grandfather had so many women parading in and out of the house, I had to escape."

Smirking, I reminded Alec, "If you had stayed, you would have met Pam sooner."

"Que sera sera," and he blushed as only an Irish vampire could.

The desk was finally empty except for a Beretta semi-automatic pistol and half a dozen clips. Pressing the hidden button for the locking mechanism, the section of bookshelf slid out of the wall and clicked back into place. I picked up the pistol and clips and started for the doorway.

Alec's quizzical expression was explained by his next words, "I know you've never cared for guns, Eric. Too easy and impersonal."

"For Pam, at the house. Just in case. Sookie has her own Benelli shotgun."

Before I could take a step out to the hall, Alec grabbed me around the bicep. His green eyes were deeply troubled. His usually soft voice had an edge to it that reflected the worry I sensed in my child.

"Please be careful, Eric."

"I always am. Besides, I have too much to live for now."

"Sookie?"

"And my son and daughter that my mate is carrying," I confided happily.

Alec's anxiety quickly turned to a radiant joy. "Thanks be to God!" and he hugged me tightly. As we went down the hall to the living room, he added very emotionally, "Pam needs to know your wonderful news, father."

* * *

After dropping Pam off at the Bon Temps house, Alec and I headed across the cemetery toward the Compton property on foot. I was relieved that Jason and Stephanie were staying. Now that his sister was with child, her big brother had assumed the role of Stackhouse family protector. If any threat were to surface at the family homestead, human, vampire or both, I felt sorry for the offending creature.

Our silent movement across the winter short grass would fool any non-vampire. The forest pattern camouflage of our clothing gave us full concealment in the darkness. Our black-gloved hands went well with our faces that were slathered in night combat makeup. We made the perfect vampire commando team.

Pressed against the huge oak only twenty yards north of the house, I sniffed the air. "Do you smell that?" The very pleasant odor was making parts of my anatomy react in a very inappropriate manner.

Chuckling, Alec answered, "Fairy scent. The Mounties are here," and he pointed toward the stand of trees that screened the back road behind the property.

Staring at the spot Alec was pointing to, I sorted out the shadowy forms of six men in camouflage gear similar to ours. My acute vampire vision registered that only their eyes stood out from their heavily painted faces.

My voice very low, I said, "Later I want to know about this fairy fragrance, my son."

"You Yank vamps aren't the only innovators, dad."

Instead of a biting retort, I clamped my hand on Alec's shoulder as six men came out of the house. The two on guard in the van joined them at the back of the vehicle.

"So much for your Canadian intelligence, sheriff."

"Now the odds are even. Makes for a better fight."

Despite the gravity of our situation, I couldn't help a chuckle at how much like me my child was in his vampire nature.

From inside the van, the men removed several items of what I recognized as sophisticated torture equipment. Their laughter and bloodstained clothing indicated that they had been enjoying some perverse fun with Bill, and were planning to continue into the night before they ultimately killed him.

Without a word, Alec disappeared around the periphery of the hit squad to the tight knot of Mounties hidden in the trees. Minutes later in a blur of movement, he was back beside me.

"The inspector confirms these eight are the only humans involved. He wants to take them now while they're outside the house, and I agree. He asks that you avoid the fire fight and see to your underling."

I had been looking forward to the hand-to-hand but sensed that the request had more to do with international politics than concern for Bill Compton's condition. "Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor as the humans say." Placing my hand tightly on my child's shoulder, I said, "_You_ be careful." I gripped his strong body possessively then let go.

We were almost of a height so our eyes were level. The emotions we exchanged were swift and deep, ending with that sweet Irish smile my child used so charmingly. An instant later, Alec had whisked across to the trees again.

As I reached the shelter of the house, I heard shouts and gunfire from the van. Foolishly attempting to flee, most of the Fellowship humans had scattered in various directions including the graveyard. One made it into the van and sped away down the hill toward the Hummingbird Road turnoff. So much for honor among haters.

In the house I found Bill tied to a heavy metal folding chair in his living room. The smell of his burnt flesh told me the thick chain holding him in place was silver. He had been stripped down to his boxers, the tight multiply wrapped loops sizzling on strategic parts of his body.

Vampires took torture quite well as I had observed personally over the centuries, physical as well as mental. In his present state, Bill Compton was a perfect example. The first layer of torture marks had already healed to faint lines. The second layer of cuts, bruises and contusions was still in the semi-raw state. The most recent abuse, deep slices that were oozing thick vampire blood down his upper body and limbs, were literally hanging open with no sign of healing yet. The handiwork was as precise and thorough as what the bad fairies had done to my Sookie a year ago.

I stepped close to my underling and called softly, "Compton?"

Slowly Bill lifted his head from where it had fallen onto his chest. The extensive damage to his face told me that at least one of the human cretins had used his head as a punching bag with great enthusiasm. His swollen eyes slitted open. Struggling to keep his head up he finally focused on my face. The reaction when he recognized me was very unexpected. Through bloody lips he smiled evilly.

Before I could reach out to begin taking apart the length of chain, a large mesh net landed on my head and covered my entire body. My first instinct, of course, was to grab the heavy links that were enveloping me like a shroud and pull it off with my protective gloves. Instead the back of my skull exploded in a blunt impact of pain.

* * *

Time had no meaning when you were unconscious. Upon awakening, you were left to wonder how long the blackness of temporary oblivion had lasted. My skull pounding with what I knew all to familiarly to be a concussion, I opened my eyes. Through the densely woven holes in the silver mesh, I saw the stark white living room ceiling above me. Ignoring the pain of the livid silver burns I felt on my face, I attempted to rise. My wrists manacled painfully in more silver in front of me, my body was too weak to move.

Completing the fresh orientation to time, the gloating smile of what had to be a rogue vampire stared down at me from her considerable height, her fangs fully extended ready to strike. Before she could speak, I asked, "Whom do I have the honor of addressing?"

Her caustic laugh caused her thick twin braids of blond hair to bounce on her broad shoulders. In a Valkyrie-like voice, she answered, "I am Marita, a soon-to-be very rich vampire. Now that my two targets are in the same place, I get to collect both my fees tonight."

I tensed, realizing this assassin, whose name meant "bitter" in Old Norse, would have headed to the Stackhouse home next if I had not been here. The battle outside was still going on but the sounds had moved to a distance as Alec and the Mounties pursued the FoTS thugs away from the Compton house. Unlike one of the human's films, I accepted that the hope of rescue was highly doubtful. What I needed to do was keep her confined to killing Bill and me so she would simply leave to collect her blood money.

Using a long-practiced delaying tactic that always worked against the arrogantly talkative type of vampire I suspected Marita was, I asked a fresh question, "Who is paying you to end me? Victor Madden?" In my present state of immobility my fate was sealed giving me the freedom to pursue another matter. Before the inevitable, I had to know who was behind the attempts on my life since Vancouver.

She laughed again, humor becoming cruelty as she kicked Bill in the stomach. "I will give this one an extra for what he has paid for twice already, the pleasure of _watching_ you die."

My focus flicked up to Bill's face. Despite knowing he was next, his smile grew in bitter malevolence.

Whipping a sleek wooden stake out of the sheath at her waist, she knelt beside me. In Old Norse, she hissed, _"You are both weak and deserve to die. It will be my pleasure to rid our race of you first, Viking."_ Raising the stake above her head, she prepared to plunge it into my unprotected heart.

There was a familiar thunk I recognized as a crossbow arrow driving inexorably into its target. Marita looked down at the slender piece of wood sticking out of the left side of her chest, a mixture of rage and disbelief covering her white face. Very ungracefully, her body crumpled, half on me and half onto the parquet floor.

Hearing the swift movement of Alec's hiking boots, I turned my head. In a very un-priestly act of rage, my child grabbed the assassin's still intact arm and flung her body across the room. The dead weight slammed into the back of Bill's heavily upholstered couch with such force the piece of furniture skidded toward the front windows, upending the coffee table and causing it to tumble end over end into a floor lamp.

As her vampire body began to disintegrate, Alec searched her clothing until he found the key for the manacles. Kneeling at my side, he ripped the silver net off my face then freed my wrists from the burning manacles. Jumping up, I kicked the net aside, the manacles skittering across the floor on top of it.

Anxiously taking inventory of my person as his fangs retracted, Alec asked, "Are you alright, father?"

"A bit singed here and there, but still intact. Thank you, Alec."

The crisis over, he laughed with relief. "If I hadn't rescued you, Pam would have castrated me. I have no interest in experiencing the agonies of my testicles re-growing."

I laughed along with my eldest child, knowing my youngest child would have done exactly that.

Turning to Bill, I began unwrapping him from the silver chain. He flinched silently as each link loosened, taking black flakes of his skin with them. I wanted to let my rage run freely, berating him for the coward I felt he was by hiring others to do his dirty work. Instead all I could do was feel pity for the ravaged body that would eventually heal. His mental illness that had twisted into such hatred toward me I could do nothing about. I had never experienced such a level of physical torture. What I had suffered at Ocella's hands had made me highly tolerant of physical pain from fights and from battle. My mental scars were resolved and archived. Perhaps in time, Bill's would heal as well. Sadly, the one thing he wanted, I could not and would not give him.

I threw the last of the chain aside and leaned close to his ear. "We have enough enemies among the humans. We should not be killing our own kind."

Our eyes met then Bill's head sank onto his chest again. Turning my back to give him some privacy in his recovery, I stood in front of Alec.

"Did you and the Mounties succeed in capturing all the humans intact?"

Averting his hate-filled eyes from Compton, Alec answered, "Alive, but somewhat damaged. There's a helicopter on its way to take all of them to Barksdale Air Force Base for transport home."

Noticing smears of blood at the corners of my child's mouth, I quirked an eyebrow. "I see your belated tolerance for human blood is still functioning."

Grinning proudly, Alec said, "Occasionally I enjoy a good helping of the real thing, especially when I can terrorize a deserving human into thinking I'm going to drain them."

Resignedly, I commented, "You are definitely my child."

Both of us laughing, we didn't see Bill's movement until it was too late. The heavy chain looped around my neck in a flash, burning my bare skin. Despite how the silver must have hurt, one of his thick hands tightened the metal so that it was steadily choking me. Knowing Alec was right there, I didn't feel truly threatened. The assassin's wooden stake that had been left unattended on the floor changed my surety. It was in Bill's other hand pressed accurately on the exact spot near my shoulder blade that would kill me.

"Sookie is MINE!" he bellowed and broke my skin. Pushing forcefully, demanding my heart, I was able to count the remainder of my life in seconds.

Helplessly, Alec watched unable to get behind me in time to stop Bill's killing strike. I kept my body still, knowing that my child would end this insane creature's threat to my beloved and our children so I could go to my final death in peace.

With three non-breathing vampires in the room there was a ponderous silence.

"BILL!"

The pressure of the stake going into my back ceased in mid-blow. With a flicker of my eyelids, I acknowledged the presence of my wife standing at the now open front door. Bill eased his body over slightly so he could see Sookie.

The Word of the Day from the calendar on my office desk had been "surreal", which is exactly what the next seconds became. I could feel all my mate's emotions along with a wave of power from her streak of magic. Though intense, her feelings about me were being held in check while she dealt with the direct threat against my life.

She didn't say a word. I could tell from her deep concentration she was speaking to Bill in significant thoughts. His totally open face registered so many emotions it was impossible to tell where they would finish, like watching a roulette wheel spinning at high speed. Finally, his eyes began to drip bloody tears.

"Forgive me, sweetheart," he begged. Ripping the stake out of my back, he turned it on himself.

I staggered from the pain and shock of the wood's sudden release but remained standing with Alec's help.

Bill Compton crumpled to the floor, coming to rest with a peaceful smile on his face. When I looked toward the door, Sookie was gone.

* * *

As Alec and I silently retraced the path we had taken less than two hours ago, I allowed my mind to replay all the images I had experienced tonight. Sookie's major role in Bill Compton's end had too many questions attached to it for me to deal with as yet. The why was obvious. The how was far more complex.

I felt a growing anger at my woman that I needed to sort out before I faced her again. Despite the strength she had gained from my blood and her growing fae power, she was still human, not vampire. What she had done tonight risked far too much for a being so fragile.

Into all my mental questioning, the image of Alec praying over the remains of two disintegrated vampires in Latin struck me as the most incongruous and the most meaningful for me. If I had died tonight, my former Catholic priest child would have prayed over me, blessing my journey to the Viking afterlife I no longer believed in. The prayers would have been more for comfort in his grief, I knew. My child was far from selfish, but he and Sookie would have needed those prayers more. I accepted that whatever my final death held had already been decided. I was much more concerned with my immortal life now with my wife and my unborn children.

* * *

From the time Eric and Alec had come in from the Compton house, I was scurrying around, finding things to do, and keeping a tight hold on my emotions. Unusually restrained for what he'd just been through, Eric's long, searching stare when he first saw me was unreadable. He answered only the questions that came from Pam and Jason out of necessity while Alec did most of the post-confrontation talking.

Assured that the danger had passed, Jason and Stephanie left. A quick change of clothes and barked orders to Pam to accompany him back to the house, Eric made a wordless exit to the Range Rover.

You're probably wondering why I wasn't wringing my hands in grief over Bill Compton's final death. Truthfully, I was having a tough time subduing the overwhelming panic attacks that were washing over me in torrents every time I thought about almost losing Eric tonight, _twice_. I could blame it all on a rush of pregnancy hormones, but that was too easy an excuse.

My redundant anxiety eased and my scurrying slowed when there was no further excuse of avoidance. I flopped down onto the couch in exhaustion. Alec had settled his long lithe frame at the other end, pensively sipping a glass of TrueBlood I'd absently handed him in my scurrying. Really looking at him for the first time, I noticed the ruddy glow that had been fully suffused under his pale skin when he'd come in from his battle with the Fellowship assassins.

The Stackhouse motor mouth I'd refined so well during my twenty-eight years was at a tongue-tied dead end. I had found it so easy to talk to the other new people in my life, DJ, Max, and Stephanie. Despite being so closely tied to Eric, I couldn't think of a thing to say to Alec Colgan.

Like almost every other vampire I'd ever met, Alec was very good looking. Not as beautiful as my Eric, but exceptionally striking. I should have formed an immediate rapport with him.

With a tinge of humor I could feel, Alec's words broke through my mental confusion. "It takes a while to collect the ashes. We vampires don't die as neatly as humans."

My eyes went wide at the matter-of-fact comment. In a heartbeat, mine to be exact, my tightly wound nerves relaxed and my body laughed in release. "My first dead vampire was named Long Shadow, a bartender at Fangtasia. Eric killed him to save my life."

"Tonight you ended Bill Compton to save Eric," he said calmly.

Unable to suppress my bitterness, I said, "I'd do it again to protect my husband and our babies." The heavy exhaustion washed over me completely, and I leaned back on the couch.

Alec's gentle voice, so new to my ears yet old in its wisdom and compassion, asked, "May I?" His hand hovered just above my lower abdomen.

With total trust, I placed his sinewy hand on the spot that sheltered and protected my precious babies.

His eyes closed, Alec's lips moved tenderly in a language I'd never heard before. Though I didn't understand the words, I felt a great peace and love flowing into me from Eric's eldest child.

He looked up at me and smiled. "That was a very ancient Irish Gaelic blessing on the unborn."

"Irish Gaelic?" I asked puzzled.

Laughing lightly, he explained, "As opposed to Scots Gaelic."

My knowledge of languages was even more limited than my exposure to history, Eric having become my greatest source of both. "There's a difference?"

Putting aside the soft Irish brogue I'd noticed in his voice, he answered in heavier intonations I assumed were a Scottish burr, "Aye, lassie, some."

"You've been to Scotland too?" As soon as I said the words I realized how silly my question was. Like Eric, he had traveled extensively over his eight hundred years of immortality both with his sire and on his own.

When Alec hesitated, I thought I had offended him. His answer came poignantly in his low, controlled tenor, "I was there at the time of the last Rising of the Highlanders."

Feeling a deep need to connect with this very special person in Eric's life, I lowered my barriers and reached out with my telepathy. There was an initial shock from Alec at the silent communication that had opened so suddenly between us. Then to my great delight, he embraced my mental quest with a pure faith that took root and began to grow in strength. Without reservation, Alec's vampire mind answered in his clear human voice.

In a panic, I began to pull back. Vampire minds had always been pretty much closed to me. With Eric, it was emotions that tied us together in our blood bond. Though there had been times what I felt from him were like clear visions of his past along with his current thoughts.

Alec must have sensed my uneasiness and gently kept my probing mind in place. I let my blue eyes lock with his warm green ones allowing the glimpse of his past to come alive. The macabre images of a body-strewn moor were haunting. A lone figure moved through the night-black field. Along with sporadic pistol shots, smudges of firelight raged garishly, pocking the bloody ground. With a faint wisp of very old pain, I felt Alec shut down his memories.

We stared intently at each other, my humanity and what remained of his in sad harmony. His reaction reminded me of Eric's emotions when he'd told me about the murders of two innocents he'd committed as an assassin for the European Consortium at the end of the Second World War. I knew at that moment that I had found a unique human/vampire bond with this rare duel-natured being that overcame the silence I had with pure vampires.

Self-consciously, Alec changed the subject. "You know all about Ocella from Eric." It was a statement rather than a question.

"Eric and I have no secrets from each other," I said remembering the vows my beloved and I had exchanged on our wedding night and reconfirmed with our New Year's resolutions. "I'm just glad that filthy pervert is dead."

I was sure Alec knew the how and when from Pam. Instead I asked a question that had been pissing me off for a long time. "After what Ocella did to Eric for all those years, why didn't Gaston punish him?" The former EC consul general was both powerful and Eric's adopted sire. As the oldest living vampire he could do anything.

"You mean 'end him'?"

"Yes!"

Alec sighed in understanding then his voice became steady and firm. "Sodomy isn't a crime to our race." He held up a hand when he saw I was about to protest angrily. "Ocella's real crime was keeping Eric half-starved so he would be forced to stay with him despite the rule against it. For that he was forbidden to have any further contact with Eric. You must remember that back then there were many living old ones who were as powerful as Gaston. They were also friends and contemporaries of "the filthy pervert" as you describe him so appropriately. Gaston was kept from doing more. Privately, he made it very clear to the Roman what would happen if he broke the banishment. He obeyed for centuries until someone tracked him down and brought him here under the mainstream radar."

Victor Madden's name came immediately to mind though a tiny prickle of something I couldn't quite put my finger on crossed with it. "Thank you for telling me all this. It fills in a lot of holes."

Alec took hold of both my hands. Very gently I felt his unusual mind probe my telepathic barriers. This second exchange of thoughts and feelings came easily. A very specific set of images blossomed in the parts of my brain that held its visual and memory capabilities.

More than the place, I felt an utter desolation of spirit from the darkness-shrouded figure standing in an open field marked by randomly placed piles of stones. The grief emanating from the tall man, head bowed, thick layers of hair glowing in the light of a full moon, was like nothing I had ever felt before.

Alec squeezed my hands affectionately then let go. I didn't have to ask him who the grieving figure was. The Viking vampire blood we shared had crossed powerfully to give me an important insight into my beloved.

I heard a car pull into the driveway. The front door opened with a flourish, and Pam strode in carrying a very large plastic storage bowl in her hands, its lid tightly sealed.

"Where do you want these ashes, Sookie?"

"On the mantel," I answered absently still caught in the thrall of my intriguing supernatural connection with Alec.

Eric walked silently by me carrying what I recognized as Bill's laptop. The connection with Alec snapped shut as I raised my barriers. Not the telepathic ones, but the ones I rarely used to control my blood bond with my husband. I watched him put the machine and a large case of disks on my computer desk on the other side of the room and open the laptop. Probing cautiously, I felt Eric's tightly shielded emotions, most of them negative, through the massive barriers he'd erected around himself.

Into the silence, Pam announced, "I flushed the bitches ashes down the toilet. Appropriate, don't you think?"

When neither Eric nor I responded, Alec went over to his bewildered sibling lover and nuzzled her ear.

Laughing lightly, Pam said, "You'll excuse us," and they headed upstairs.

Silence had many uses. It also had many faces between two people as deeply committed as Eric and I were to each other. I used this first layer of silence to watch my beloved in one of those innocent moments of simple intimacy. As young as he had been at his turning, Eric had his share of human scars. Viking raids and working the land made injuries commonplace back then. His rare scars had been minor and were hidden from everyone except me. Once he became vampire any physical injury healed, leaving his beautiful body so perfect it hurt my eyes to look at him sometimes. I occasionally wondered what he would look like with a healthy growth of blond facial hair.

The silver burns that had marred his handsome face when he'd first come in from his ordeal were gone now as was the anger and pain I'd felt earlier from him as they swept into my mind through our blood bond. There had been something else, the final impetus that had started me running across the cemetery to the Compton house. It wasn't fear but an agonizing despair he'd let escape at losing his children and me too soon.

The second layer of silence was personal, swirling rapids of conflicting emotions my lover was struggling to control. Before I could say anything, Eric said gruffly, "Go to bed, Sookie. You need your rest." His vivid blue eyes didn't move from the computer screen.

I watched his powerful hands, so capable of dispensing the depths of pain to his enemies as well as the heights of pleasure to me, as they whizzed across the keyboard.

The tone of Eric's voice told me we were on the verge of one of our rare but heated arguments. Because of the muddle of his emotions, I wasn't sure why he wanted the confrontation.

My voice soothing and conciliatory, deep with the intimacy we had come to after so many struggles, I asked, "Why are you angry with me, Eric?"

Raising his thickly lashed eyes to me across the room, he said coldly, "You disobeyed me."

It was another provocation; one he knew would normally cause me to lash out at his high-handed attitude. Instead I projected one of the images of the babies I'd gotten from Stephanie. Eric was so startled, I felt his barriers begin to fall. Not giving him time to ask, I quickly followed with the words I'd forced into Bill's mind along with the image, _"If you really love me, you won't kill the father of my babies."_

"You ended him," a rare note of astonishment in Eric's deep voice.

"I gave him the choice."

Eric turned completely in the chair to face me. My lover opened himself to his emotions and to me like never before. Heavy red tears began to collect at the inside and outside corners of his shimmering eyes. "Twenty years after my turning, I returned to my human home desperate to find out if my children were well. I found our family lands devastated and everyone dead. There was nothing left of my human essence on this earth with all of them gone."

I clenched my fists, recognizing the words he had used to Niall. I understood both what his true meaning had been then and the vision that Alec had shown me earlier. I also felt a nameless compulsion to keep silent a little longer.

When he spoke again it was with a tremulous smile. "The babies you carry are my second chance at true immortality. I was reconciled to my death tonight. When you risked their lives, I did not know what to do. I know you did this thing out of love for me, but the potential price was far too high. I need you and them to live before all else, my beloved wife." The whites of Eric's eyes were red now, completely coated with his tears.

"I understand and I apologize." My whole body shaking, I took Eric's hand and placed it on my abdomen. "What you must understand, my beloved husband, is that we need you just as much."

I was right in front of him, our bodies beginning the wanting and needing. I rested both my arms around his shoulders expecting him to embrace me with his long arms. To my shock, he flinched and pulled away. Vampires didn't flinch like that, especially not _my_ vampire.

With quick expert hands, I pulled Eric's Henley shirt up and over his head and gasped. The white vampire skin had almost healed around the wide hole where Bill had plunged the rogue's stake into his back just short of reaching his heart. Protruding out a good two inches was a wicked splinter that must have broken off when Alec had pulled the large piece of wood out. Since he'd changed his clothes there was no trace of blood on the fresh shirt. His vampire body was gradually expelling the foreign object on its own but not painlessly.

Gritting my teeth, I gripped the nasty splinter and pulled. Eric shuddered as a spurt of thick blood oozed then sighed as the wound began to close completely.

Wiping my gooey red hands on his shirt, I said, "You are so damn stubborn, vampire."

Through our bond, I felt him push away the last twinges of pain. Grinning up at me suggestively, he said, "I could use a scrubbing, lover. How about a shower?"

Holding my wrist against his lips, I suggested, "You could use some nourishment first."

Taking my hand, he kissed my palm. "A bottle of TrueBlood will do. Our children come first."

I ran my fingers through his long, loose hair slowly and smiled at his naïve concern. "Tomorrow I'll make an appointment with Dr. Ludwig. I'm sure she knows of prenatal vitamins strong enough for three – two babies and one very horny vampire."

Eric laughed freely and joyfully, and crushed my body hard against him, his sensuous mouth fondling my breasts through my light knit sweater, his powerful thighs circling my legs hungrily.

Giggling and laughing together, he picked me up in his arms and carried me down the hall. We didn't know what lay ahead of us when the time came for the final confrontation with the vampire conspirators. For now, the loving Eric and I would share tonight would do its magic to wipe away the ugliness and pain this winter night had forced on us.


End file.
